2411 Forest and Workplace Fires in Last 5 Years and 3 Months: "Fire Prevention and Safety Rule Compliance"

Collapse accidents including ground subsidence during emergency responses related to safety incidents also increased significantly compared to February

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] Based on the analysis of fires, disasters, and safety accidents that occurred over the past five years until last year, the Seoul Fire and Disaster Headquarters urged compliance with fire prevention and safety rules in March.

According to the Seoul Fire and Disaster Headquarters on the 7th, during the statistical analysis period from 2017 to 2021, there were 2,411 fires in March, accounting for 8.5% of all fires, which was an 11.9% increase compared to February.

By location, fires in residential facilities were the most frequent with 898 cases, followed by living service facilities and sales/business facilities. In particular, fires occurring in workplaces such as ironworks numbered 54, the highest in March throughout the year. Additionally, there were 35 forest fires including 23 mountain fires, the highest number occurring in March throughout the year. Recently, on the 24th of last month, a fire broke out on the third ridge of Bulamsan in Nowon-gu, burning approximately 6,000㎡ and was extinguished within an hour.

The main cause of forest fires was carelessness, accounting for 15 cases. Among the types of carelessness, cigarette butts were the most common with 6 cases, followed by 3 cases each of playing with fire and burning forest areas, and 2 cases of leaving fire sources unattended. A representative from the Seoul Fire and Disaster Headquarters said, “March is when forest fires and mountain fires occur most frequently due to dry weather and strong winds,” and added, “We ask for your cooperation in refraining from illegal garbage burning and other such acts to prevent fires.”

Meanwhile, from 2017 to 2021, there were 58,052 119 emergency dispatches related to safety accidents in March. In particular, due to the seasonal thawing of frozen ground in March, there were 71 collapse accidents including slope (retaining wall) collapses and ground subsidence, which was 25 cases (54.3%) more than in February.

Jung Gyo-cheol, Head of the Field Response Division at the Seoul Fire and Disaster Headquarters, said, “March, when the weather gradually warms, often leads to major fires caused by momentary carelessness and negligence,” and added, “We ask for your attention to fire safety and hope you enjoy the warm spring days safely.”

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