Fire Authorities Requested Joint Response from Police 15 Times During Itaewon Disaster

[Asia Economy Reporter Eunmo Koo] Fire authorities requested joint response from the police 15 times on the day of the Itaewon Halloween disaster.

According to the 'Fire Department-Police Agency Joint Response Request Details' released by the National Fire Agency on the 4th, fire authorities requested the full mobilization of police personnel from all possible agencies, including the National Police Agency, Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, and Yongsan Police Station in Seoul, on the 29th of last month when the disaster occurred.

The first time the Seoul Fire Disaster Headquarters requested joint response from the National Police Agency was at 10:18 PM, immediately after the accident. The fire authorities received the report of the Itaewon Halloween disaster at 10:15 PM. Then, at 10:56 PM, the Seoul Fire Disaster Headquarters stated that a large number of police personnel were needed, and three minutes later, at 10:59 PM, they requested additional support from the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency.

As on-site control was still not established, at 11:16 PM the Seoul Fire Disaster Headquarters requested on-site control from the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, and at 11:21 PM the National Fire Agency requested the National Police Agency to deploy police for vehicle and personnel control support. Then, at 11:22 PM, they requested the Yongsan Police Station to "mobilize all personnel for on-site control." This was one minute after the National Fire Agency requested the National Police Agency to "mobilize police for vehicle and personnel control." At 11:43 PM, they requested the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency to "mobilize maximum personnel as on-site control is not possible due to large gatherings," and at 11:50 PM, they again requested the National Police Agency to deploy additional police forces.

Since the first report was received, fire authorities requested joint response six times from the National Police Agency, seven times from the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, and twice from the Yongsan Police Station. National Police Chief Yoon Hee-geun became aware of the accident only after the fire authorities had requested police support 14 times, and the Seoul Police Chief arrived at the scene at 12:25 AM to order an all-out response. The police stated they would not issue a separate statement regarding the release of this information.

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