Active Firefighter: "Please, 'Politicians' Do Not Come to Disaster Sites"

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Recently, Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung has been embroiled in controversy for arriving late at the Coupang logistics center fire scene. Amid this, an active-duty firefighter caught attention by posting, "I wish politicians would just not come to the scene," stating that protocol arrangements prevent proper firefighting activities.

Notably, this post was made on the 20th, a day before Governor Lee officially apologized on the 21st for not immediately going to the fire scene during the Icheon Coupang logistics center fire incident and instead recording a "mukbang YouTube broadcast." It is difficult to see this post as having any particular intent. It is noteworthy for reflecting the realistic voice of a firefighter.

The firefighter expressed their stance on the anonymous Gyeonggi Province firefighting board that day, saying, "There is a lot of criticism in the media about the governor not visiting the scene immediately when the Coupang fire occurred, but I think the opposite."

They continued, "I believe there are many (executive) staff who are well acquainted with disaster scenes, such as the chief, fire station chief, and headquarters chief," and criticized, "When politicians visit, the protocol, including photo shoots, only hinders the (firefighting) staff from working at the scene (it is of no help at all)."

They added, "I have seen in the media that politicians visited and took commemorative photos during the collapsed building accident in Gwangju Metropolitan City in June, which was reported as abuse of power," and advised, "I think politicians should focus more on how to improve the treatment of our (firefighting) staff when accidents happen rather than unnecessary visits to disaster scenes."

Also, they expressed regret, saying, "I witnessed the death of a fellow colleague at the Coupang accident scene," and "Living with such trauma, I feel saddened when the media brings up Coupang again, reminding me of unpleasant memories."

Furthermore, they concluded, "I sincerely hope politicians minimize visits to disaster scenes and help firefighting officials to operate safely at disaster sites," and apologized, "Sorry for this disorganized heavy post. I hope (firefighters) worked safely at the scene today as well."

Meanwhile, on the 21st, Governor Lee apologized via Facebook, saying, "I acknowledge and apologize that my judgment and actions did not meet the expectations of the sovereign people," regarding his late arrival at the Coupang logistics center.

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