Gyeongbuk Governor Lee Cheol-woo Visits POSCO Fire Site, Urges "Preparation for Steel Industry's Rebound"

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Dongwook Park] Lee Cheol-woo, Governor of Gyeongsangbuk-do, visited the fire site at POSCO Pohang Steelworks on the afternoon of the 15th to assess the damage and discuss recovery plans with on-site personnel.

While inspecting the fire site, Governor Lee told POSCO officials, "In the event of a fire, casualties usually occur due to toxic gases rather than the flames themselves. Fortunately, there were no casualties thanks to the prompt response," and emphasized the importance of disaster response training by stating, "We will take measures to conduct fire response training at facilities at risk of fire within the province."

In response, POSCO Executive Director Lee Joo-yeop, who reported on the situation, expressed gratitude to the fire department, saying, "The large-scale mobilization of personnel and equipment by the fire headquarters and the swift response minimized the damage."

Governor Lee said, "The steel industry’s exports sharply declined by 24.1% in April due to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), and the industry is facing difficulties on all fronts, including global oversupply and changes in the industrial paradigm. We must prepare for a leap forward through the development of high-performance steel materials in line with the Fourth Industrial Revolution."

He then comforted and encouraged POSCO officials by saying, "To foster new growth for POSCO’s steel industry, which is facing difficulties due to COVID-19 and this fire, we will ensure that the 'Steel Industry Re-advancement Technology Development Project,' which passed the Ministry of Science and ICT’s technology evaluation last December, successfully passes the main preliminary feasibility study."

Meanwhile, a fire broke out around 12:30 p.m. on the 13th at the Sodunsan Processing Plant of POSCO Pohang Steelworks, burning 700㎡ inside the factory and production facilities, causing property damage worth 600 million KRW.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.