'Gwangju Apartment Collapse' Excavators Deployed for Focused Search of Missing Persons

10 Rescue Dogs and 52 Rescue Personnel Deployed

Mayor Lee Yong-seop's 'Swift Action' with 24-Hour On-Site Presence

Gwangju Mayor Lee Yong-seop is giving a site briefing related to the Hwajeong I-Park collapse accident at 10 a.m. on the 13th.

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Jin-hyung] At the site of the "Hyundai Development Company Apartment Construction Collapse Accident" in Gwangju, fire authorities are deploying excavators and other equipment to conduct search operations for 6 missing persons.

Lee Yong-seop, Mayor of Gwangju Metropolitan City, stated at a briefing at the site at 10 a.m. on the 13th, "We will use all means and methods to the best of our ability to search for the missing and prevent additional collapse accidents."

On this day, 10 rescue dogs and 52 rescue personnel were deployed to search for the 6 missing persons.

Among the 6 rescue dogs deployed the previous day, 4 showed abnormal reactions by circling specific locations between the 26th and 28th floors, drawing attention to whether the same reactions would be observed during this day’s search.

An unmanned excavator was deployed for the first time to remove debris. It is mainly concentrated in areas where the missing persons were working and the presumed fall points.

The construction company, Hyundai Development Company, plans to complete the dismantling of the tower crane by the 16th. Since the tower crane attached to the building is tilted more than 20 degrees, there is a risk of additional collapse, and this measure is to ensure safe rescue operations.

The city is considering a plan to completely demolish the collapsed building and reconstruct it. Administrative orders have been issued to suspend construction at five other local sites managed by Hyundai Development Company. Construction is expected to resume after safety reviews are conducted.

Additionally, the city plans to introduce a public supervision team system to thoroughly inspect safety at workplaces above a certain scale, and through the city audit committee, it will also investigate whether there was any negligence in management by the supervisory authorities.

Mayor Lee is overseeing the search operations and is stationed at the site 24 hours a day to promptly take necessary measures.

Mayor Lee said, "Once again, I apologize to the families of the missing and the public, and I will do my utmost to find the missing as quickly as possible."

Meanwhile, the accident occurred around 3:46 p.m. the previous day at the apartment construction site when concrete was being poured on the 39th floor rooftop, causing the outer walls and structures from the 23rd to 38th floors to collapse.

One worker was slightly injured and is receiving treatment at a hospital, while six workers are missing and out of contact.

Police and fire authorities, along with the construction company, have identified the status of all 394 workers (from 22 companies) at the site. The six missing persons’ mobile phone locations were detected near the construction site, but they have not been contacted.

They are presumed to have been working on window installation and other tasks on the 28th to 31st floors of the building where the outer walls and structures collapsed.

The fallen debris also covered about 10 vehicles parked nearby, burying them.

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