"Locking Digestive Pumps and Turning Off Fire Detectors"... Gyeonggi Fire Department Catches 118 Violations

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] The Gyeonggi-do Fire and Disaster Headquarters has identified 118 apartments and logistics centers in Gyeonggi-do where fire pump valves were closed to prevent fire water from flowing, or fire alarm systems and emergency stop devices were arbitrarily stopped.

The special judicial police of the Gyeonggi Fire Headquarters announced on the 13th that from April 26 to July 2, they conducted a planned investigation of fire facilities at 718 locations including residential-commercial complexes, apartments, and logistics warehouses in the province, and judged 118 places, or 16.4%, as defective.

Among these, the Gyeonggi Fire special judicial police filed charges in 6 cases and imposed fines on 80 cases. There were 64 corrective orders and 377 guidance and recommendations.

Major cases include an apartment in Yangpyeong where the fire pump valve was closed, an apartment in Suwon where the safety pin of the gas-type fire extinguishing system was blocked, and another apartment in Suwon where the fire alarm (emergency broadcasting device) was stopped and caught in this crackdown.

The Gyeonggi Fire special judicial police filed charges against all these apartments that violated the closure and blocking of fire facilities.

Additionally, a logistics center in Uiwang was fined for arbitrarily manipulating the power control panel operating the fire pump, and a residential-commercial complex in Osan was fined for manually manipulating the sprinkler pump.

A logistics center in Yongin was fined for stacking items at the bottom of the fire shutter.

Under the current Fire Prevention, Installation, Maintenance, and Safety Management of Fire Facilities Act (Fire Facilities Act), violations of closing and blocking fire facilities are punishable by imprisonment of up to 5 years or a fine of up to 50 million won.

Also, violations involving arbitrary manipulation of fire pump power control panels and receivers are subject to fines of up to 2 million won, and violations such as obstruction of evacuation facilities and fire prevention facilities are subject to fines of up to 3 million won.

Lee Sang-gyu, head of the Gyeonggi Fire Headquarters, emphasized, "Blocking fire facilities is an extremely dangerous act equivalent to risking lives," and added, "We will continuously conduct planned crackdowns on illegal acts that undermine fire safety."

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