Gwangju Bukbu Fire Station: "Keep a 'Class K Fire Extinguisher' in the Kitchen"

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Yoon Jamin] Gwangju Bukbu Fire Station (Chief Kim Hee-cheol) urged that K-class fire extinguishers should be installed in kitchens such as restaurants to reduce casualties and property damage caused by cooking oil fires.

According to the Bukbu Fire Station on the 21st, cooking oil used in kitchens has a boiling point higher than its ignition point (the temperature at which it catches fire), so there is a risk of re-ignition even if the flames are extinguished.

K-class fire extinguishers, when used for fires caused by animal and vegetable oils (such as cooking oil), instantly create a film layer (saponification reaction) on the surface of the oil to block oxygen. They also rapidly lower the oil temperature to prevent re-ignition, effectively responding to fires caused by oil.

Since the revision of fire safety standards in June 2017, the mandatory installation targets for K-class fire extinguishers include kitchens in restaurants, multi-use facilities, hotels, dormitories, facilities for the elderly and children, medical facilities, office buildings, factories, funeral homes, educational and research facilities, correctional and military facilities.

However, locations that were targets before the revision of fire safety standards are not subject to mandatory installation, so voluntary installation by business owners is necessary.

A fire station official said, “It is essential to actively participate in installing kitchen fire extinguishers in kitchens with high fire risk to prepare in advance for fires.”

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