"Guarded the scene since early evening" ... Seoul Firefighters Union Strongly Condemns Yongsan Fire Station Chief's Investigation

Yong San Fire Chief Choi Seong Beom Booked on Charges of Negligent Homicide
"Anger Over Ministry of Interior and Police Leadership Avoiding Responsibility, Blaming Staff"

On the morning of the 30th of last month, Choi Seong-beom, Chief of the Seoul Yongsan Fire Station, is briefing at the scene of the Halloween crowd crush accident in Itaewon-dong, Yongsan-gu. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon] As the police investigating the Itaewon disaster have booked Choi Seong-beom, head of the Yongsan Fire Station, on charges of professional negligence resulting in death and injury, the Seoul Firefighters' Union raised their voices, strongly condemning the "scapegoating-style investigation."

The Seoul Fire Department Branch of the National Public Officials Labor Union Fire Headquarters stated in a press release on the 8th, "We want to ask again who the actual responsible command line was." They criticized, "Looking at the investigation results that shift responsibility to the field workers while the responsible command of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the police are excluded, it is infuriating whether they truly understand the gravity of this incident."

Regarding Chief Choi, they pointed out, "He voluntarily waited at the Itaewon 119 Safety Center on the day of the accident and was the first to rush to the scene to take command after the accident was reported," adding, "Although some records indicate insufficient safety measures as alleged facts, in reality, there were only cases where other emergency patients required dispatch."

They further stated, "The anger and resentment of the public now is whether the state was present at the scene when many casualties occurred," and reiterated, "The police investigation that scapegoats field-level personnel while granting impunity to high-ranking officials in the government’s responsible and command lines is an irresponsible direction that betrays the public’s wishes."

They continued, "The sight of the Yongsan Fire Station chief trembling and holding the microphone during the briefing at the accident scene pained all our hearts," and argued, "The public is questioning whether holding those who stayed at the scene accountable is truly punishing the responsible parties." They also emphasized, "As workers protecting the safety and lives of the public on the front lines, we will watch to ensure that the truth of this disaster is uncovered and the responsible parties are properly punished," warning, "If scapegoats are made by granting impunity to the command responsibility, we will strongly fight back."

The union holds the position that there is no problem with Chief Choi’s response. Kim Ju-hyung, head of the National Public Officials Labor Union Fire Headquarters, said in an interview with MBC Radio’s 'Kim Jong-bae’s Focus' on the 9th, when asked if he thought the booking of Chief Choi was unfair, "Honestly, even if I were in that position, I doubt I could have done better than him." He added, "He came to the scene on his day off to encourage the staff, and he was at the scene from early evening when the accident occurred," and said, "He ran to the scene before the field personnel and I thought, 'This person is really amazing.' It’s not easy to do that." He also said, "Would I have done the same in that position? But they booked him. Then I really don’t know how far our duties should go."

Regarding the '30-minute gap' between the first-level dispatch, which mobilizes all personnel from the jurisdictional fire station, and the second-level measures, which was judged as inappropriate initial response, he explained, "Issuing the second-level dispatch is not necessarily the chief’s duty; it can be done by the person in the situation room or the Seoul Fire Disaster Headquarters."

The Police Agency’s Special Investigation Headquarters, investigating the Itaewon disaster, announced on the 7th that six people, including former Yongsan Police Station Chief Lee Im-jae, Yongsan District Mayor Park Hee-young, the head and section chief of the Yongsan Police Station Intelligence Division, former Seoul Police Agency Personnel Education Division Chief Ryu Mi-jin, and Chief Choi of the Fire Station, have been converted to suspects.

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