Police: Fire Origin in Ulsan Apartment Fire Was the 3rd Floor Terrace

Second Forensic Examination Confirms Fire Origin at Terrace Wooden Deck
Fire Suspected to Have Spread Upwards via Building Exterior Materials

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Onyu Lim] The initial point of fire in the mixed-use apartment complex fire in Ulsan was investigated to be the outdoor terrace on the 3rd floor.

The Ulsan Metropolitan Police Agency's dedicated investigation team announced this during a second joint on-site inspection briefing at 4 p.m. that day.

Bang Kyung-bae, head of the Forensic Investigation Division at the Ulsan Police Agency, who participated in the inspection, explained, "The primary purpose of the inspection is to determine the cause of ignition and identify the exact location of the fire's origin," adding, "In today's inspection, the origin was confirmed to be the wooden deck on the 3rd floor outdoor terrace."

Bang stated, "When identifying the ignition point, we generally examine combustion patterns, soot, and the depth of charring," and added, "We found cement delamination on the 3rd floor, which only occurs at very high temperatures. Considering this, there was no disagreement among the participating agencies regarding the fire's origin."

He further noted, "There is an aluminum composite panel on the wall above the deck where the fire started."

In fact, the apartment building shows traces of fire spreading in a 'V' shape from the 3rd-floor terrace exterior wall upwards to the upper floors. Combining this with the inspection results, it is estimated that the fire started on the 3rd floor and grew as it spread to the fire-vulnerable exterior materials of the building.

Although the initial fire report suggested that the outdoor air conditioning unit might have caused the fire, this was ruled out. Bang explained, "We confirmed that electrical factors were not involved, and it is judged that the outdoor air conditioning unit can be excluded as the cause of the fire."

However, the police stated that the cause of the fire must be determined through analysis of debris and the investigation team's findings.

The investigation team is analyzing CCTV footage and related materials submitted by the apartment management office where the fire occurred to determine the cause of the fire.

They have also secured CCTV footage installed in nearby buildings and are investigating the situation at the time of the fire by interviewing witnesses and reporters.

The dedicated team also plans to collect exterior materials from the fire scene to examine whether there were any quality defects.

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