Gyeonggi Fire Department Identifies 57 Fire Safety Violations in Nursing Hospitals and Facilities for Evacuation-Vulnerable Individuals

Removing a fire door closer

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Fire alarm receivers malfunctioning or fire doors damaged at nursing hospitals and residential facilities for the disabled?'facilities used by evacuation-vulnerable persons' in the Gyeonggi area?have been repeatedly detected by fire authorities.

The Gyeonggi Provincial Fire and Disaster Headquarters announced on the 17th that from the 9th to the 30th of last month, they conducted an intensive inspection of fire facility defects at 202 facilities used by evacuation-vulnerable persons, including nursing hospitals and residential facilities for the disabled in the Gyeonggi area, and identified 57 defective facilities.

At nursing hospital A, the fire alarm receiver, a fire alarm device, was left malfunctioning, making it impossible for the alarm system to operate in case of fire. Nursing home B was caught for not installing a door closer?a function that automatically locks the door in emergencies?on the fire door. The Fire and Disaster Headquarters plans to impose fines on these facilities.

Additionally, nursing hospitals with defective emergency exit lighting and residential facilities for the disabled with faulty backup power for fire facilities were detected and received orders for corrective action.

Furthermore, nursing hospitals that had unauthorizedly converted parts of balconies into offices or changed rooftop floors without permission to use them as management offices were reported to relevant authorities.

The Fire and Disaster Headquarters took a total of 60 actions against the detected institutions, including 8 fines, 47 corrective orders, and 5 institution notifications.

This intensive inspection was a measure following the multiple deaths at a hemodialysis clinic caused by the Icheon fire in August. The Fire and Disaster Headquarters plans to continue the intensive inspection of defective fire facilities at evacuation-vulnerable facilities in the Gyeonggi area until the end of the year.

Nam Hwa-young, head of the Gyeonggi Provincial Fire and Disaster Headquarters, emphasized, "Facilities used by evacuation-vulnerable persons can suffer uncontrollable casualties from even a single fire," and added, "We will strongly punish illegal fire safety violations that threaten the safety of residents."

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