Unexpected Inspection of Hazardous Materials Left at Construction Sites ... Administrative Orders Including Fines Issued at 139 Locations

Seoul City Inspects 330 Sites Over 5,000㎡ Total Floor Area ... Identifies Violations

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] A total of 139 construction sites were caught illegally storing diesel fuel used for machinery, lubricants, waterproofing agents, paints, etc., or conducting construction without properly equipped fire safety facilities.

The Seoul Fire & Disaster Headquarters announced on the 13th that, as a result of a surprise inspection on the storage and handling of hazardous materials at construction sites conducted from November 9 to December 24 last year, 141 violations were confirmed at 139 locations, resulting in 22 fines, 84 corrective orders, and 35 on-site corrections.

The inspection targeted 330 construction sites in Seoul with a total floor area of 5,000㎡ or more. Considering the COVID-19 situation, the inspection was conducted without prior notice, with minimal personnel while adhering to quarantine rules.

The most common violations were breaches of temporary fire safety facility installation standards at construction sites, followed by violations of hazardous material storage and handling standards, accumulation of combustible materials nearby, poor signage, and insufficient numbers of temporary fire hydrants.

For example, construction site A in Guro-gu was found to be illegally storing kerosene for concrete curing on the basement first floor, violating the "Small Quantity Hazardous Materials Indoor Storage and Handling Installation Standards" stipulated in the Seoul Hazardous Materials Safety Management Ordinance.

Construction site B in Seocho-gu was caught storing floor coating paints illegally on the basement second floor parking lot, and construction site C in Gangnam-gu violated Article 10-2, Paragraph 1 of the Fire Services Act by having large fire extinguishers installed on the first and second floors above ground in a malfunctioning state, failing to install, maintain, and manage temporary fire safety facilities.

The inspection team also issued on-site correction orders for issues such as defective locking devices at hazardous material storage locations, improper placement of fire extinguishers, corrections to signage, defective fire extinguisher pressure, and removal of nearby combustible materials.

A Fire & Disaster Headquarters official stated, "Most chemical products used in each process at construction sites are classified as hazardous materials," urging that when storing or handling hazardous materials above a certain quantity, approval must be obtained from the local fire station and proper storage facilities must be established.

Meanwhile, construction sites are required to install temporary fire safety facilities to prevent fire damage, and violations can result in fines of up to 3 million KRW.

In the past three years, there have been a total of 374 fires at construction sites in Seoul. Of these, 30 fires were directly caused by hazardous materials such as careless handling of petroleum products, and 21 fires were expanded due to hazardous materials, accounting for 13.6% of all construction site fires. During this period, there were 20 casualties (2 deaths and 18 injuries) from construction site fires, with hazardous material-related fires accounting for 45% of casualties (2 deaths and 7 injuries).

Choi Tae-young, head of the Seoul Fire & Disaster Headquarters, emphasized, "Since the possibility of fire increases during the winter cold wave, special attention is required at construction sites."

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