Amazing Technology That Prevented a Semi-Basement Furniture Fire in Seodaemun-gu?

Nation's First Application of 'Smart Sensor IoT Home Network Technology' Implemented in 300 Households... Resident in Hongeun-dong Prevents Major Fire with Fire Sensor, Warning Light, and Text Alert System Activation

Seodaemun-gu (Mayor Lee Seongheon) has recently launched a safety management system that integrates the nation’s first-ever “smart sensor Internet of Things (IoT) home network” technology in 300 semi-basement households.

Once implemented, this system can detect disasters such as fires, flooding, and carbon monoxide emissions early, preventing them from escalating into major catastrophes.

In the event of an actual disaster, voice alerts are issued within the household based on sensor detection information, such as “Fire detected! Fire detected! A fire has broken out. Please evacuate to a safe place” or “Flooding detected. Please evacuate to a safe place and check the flooding location.”

Simultaneously, disaster alert messages are sent to the resident’s mobile phone, and the situation is reported to the Seodaemun-gu Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (control center).

To implement this service, the district installed eight types of equipment in the targeted semi-basement households: fire sensors, flood sensors, carbon monoxide sensors, temperature sensors, IoT fire extinguishers, voice-guided warning lights, LTE IoT routers for LTE communication, and gateways.

The flood sensors installed on the walls are the first of their kind developed nationwide and detect flooding when water rises 5mm or more from the floor. Smoke-detecting fire sensors, carbon monoxide sensors, and temperature sensors are installed on the ceiling.

The voice-guided warning lights receive detected information from the gateway and alert residents loudly to danger. The IoT fire extinguisher, which remotely monitors the pressure status of the extinguisher, was also introduced nationwide for the first time.

Residents using the service bear almost no costs. The district office covers communication fees and sensor malfunction management free of charge, so residents only need to pay the electricity bill for some equipment such as the gateway.

The introduction of the “Smart Safety Management Service for Semi-Basement Households” required 300 million KRW from the district and 200 million KRW from the city government, with the latter funded through recognition of the project’s feasibility in a Seoul city public contest.

Recently, a case demonstrating the effectiveness of this service occurred.

A 56-year-old resident living alone in Hong Eun-dong was boiling barley tea on a gas stove but forgot to turn off the flame, causing the kettle to start burning. The fire sensor reacted to the smoke, triggering the warning light, and a fire detection message was sent to the resident via the district’s control system. Thanks to this, the resident rushed to the kitchen and turned off the gas, preventing a major fire.

Seodaemun-gu has been recognized for this project, winning the grand prize at the “Seoul Digital Workshop Best Case Presentation Contest” in May and the Minister of the Interior and Safety Award at the “40th Regional Informatization Research Presentation Contest” in September.

A district official said, “It is challenging to help elderly single-person households, who mainly reside in semi-basement homes, understand the operation system of this smart safety management service, which is the first in the nation to apply IoT technology. Therefore, active guidance and promotion are necessary.”

Mayor Lee Seongheon stated, “Based on safety management services applying smart technologies of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, we will respond quickly and effectively to disasters in semi-basement households to create a safer and happier Seodaemun-gu.”

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