Foreign Couple Who Extinguished Large Fire with Bucket... Scheduled to Receive Commendation Plaque for Their Contribution

Preventing Human and Property Damage in Forest Fire Suppression on the Way Home

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] On the 9th, a foreign couple passing through a road in Onsan-eup, Ulju-gun, extinguished a forest fire, preventing casualties and property damage.

According to the Fire Agency on the 21st, Yoon-ah Lee (31), who resides in Ulsan Metropolitan City, and her husband Nguyen Phuoc (34, Vietnamese nationality) discovered flames and smoke rising by the roadside while returning home together from work on the 9th. Ms. Lee naturalized from Vietnam in 2014.

The couple stopped their car on the shoulder, reported the fire to 119, then found a rubber container and a bucket filled with water nearby. They repeatedly carried water in the bucket to suppress the flames in the early stages of the fire. After the Onsan Fire Station team arrived at the scene, the couple guided the firefighters to the fire location and assisted with extinguishing remaining embers and other activities.

In response, the Ulsan Onsan Fire Station plans to award a plaque of appreciation to the couple in March for their dedicated firefighting efforts. Ms. Lee stated, “As a citizen of the Republic of Korea, I did what was natural, and I would act the same way if faced with a similar situation again.”

Um Jun-wook, head of the Ulsan Fire Headquarters, said, “We thank the honorees who prevented a large-scale fire through swift initial response in a critical situation where the fire could have spread to nearby hills and residential areas,” adding, “We will continue to operate various fire safety education programs tailored to foreigners’ perspectives to eliminate safety blind spots.”

Meanwhile, the Fire Agency produces and distributes fire safety education materials in six languages?English, Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Thai, and Russian?for foreigners, and uses animated videos and other media as educational resources for foreign children.

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