The road where 6 firefighters died in the line of duty 23 years ago will become the 'Firefighter Hero Road'

Seodaemun-gu Assigned as of March 4, the Day of the Disaster

Seodaemun-gu, Seoul (Mayor Lee Seongheon) announced on the 26th that it has decided to designate the street ‘Tongillo 37-gil’ within the district as an honorary road named ‘Firefighter Hero Road.’ Firefighter Hero Road is a 382-meter-long and 10-meter-wide street that stretches from Exit 3 of Hongje Station (Hongje-dong 161-1) to in front of Goeun Elementary School (Hongje-dong 156-461).

This is the first time in Seoul that an honorary road related to firefighters has been designated. The district will install an honorary road nameplate here. Although honorary roads are not used as actual addresses, the district head can designate them considering factors such as the social dedication and public interest of individuals related to the area, as well as the symbolism of local history and culture.

‘Firefighter Hero Road’ is located near the site of the Hongje-dong residential fire disaster that occurred on March 4, 2001. At that time, within about five minutes of the firefighting operation, seven people were rescued, and while extinguishing the remaining flames, firefighters rushed back inside upon hearing that someone was still inside. However, the building collapsed instantly, resulting in the deaths of six firefighters. This tragic incident became a turning point for improving firefighters’ working systems and advancing firefighting systems.

Seodaemun-gu promoted the designation of this honorary road to honor the spirit of sacrifice of the six firefighters who died in the line of duty (Park Donggyu, Kim Cheolhong, Park Sangok, Kim Giseok, Jang Seokchan, Park Junwoo), to boost firefighters’ pride, and to raise citizens’ awareness of fire safety. To commemorate the date of the disaster (March 4, 2001), the honorary road naming date was set as March 4.

Lee Seongheon, Mayor of Seodaemun-gu, said, “Although a long time has passed, many citizens passing through ‘Firefighter Hero Road’ will remember the efforts and sacrifices of firefighters,” and added, “We will also work harder to make the city safer from disasters through this honorary road designation.”

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