This Time on Basement Level 4... Electric Vehicle Charging Fire Again in Apartment Parking Lot

Jeonbuk Jeonju-si Innovation City Apartment
Sprinkler Activated... No Human Casualties

Following a fire in a Mercedes-Benz electric vehicle while parked in an underground parking lot of an apartment complex in Cheongna, Incheon last August, another incident occurred where an electric vehicle caught fire while charging in the underground parking lot of an apartment complex in Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do.

On the 9th, Yonhap News reported that around 3 a.m. that day, a fire broke out in a Niro electric vehicle that was charging in the underground parking lot of an apartment complex in Jang-dong, Jeonbuk Innovation City, Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do. The fire department responded to a report from an apartment staff member stating, "There is a lot of smoke in the underground 4th-floor parking lot," dispatching 34 pieces of equipment including a special suppression vehicle and 84 personnel. Upon arrival, flames were seen coming from the underside of the electric vehicle that was charging in the parking lot, and the vehicle was about half burned. It was reported that the electric vehicle had been charging since the previous evening.

A fire broke out in an electric vehicle charging in the underground parking lot of an apartment in Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do, 9 days ago, and firefighters are extinguishing it.
[Photo by Jeollabuk-do Fire Headquarters, Yonhap News]

The fire department stated that the sprinkler system was operating in the underground parking lot at the time of the fire, and the area was filled with smoke. The firefighters extinguished the flames in about an hour, then moved the burned vehicle to the surface and submerged it in a water tank. Fortunately, there were no casualties from the fire. A fire official said, "At the time of the fire, there were about 2,420 vehicles parked indoors, including 454 on the underground 4th floor," adding, "The firefighters quickly entered and put out the fire, preventing it from spreading." The fire department is currently investigating the exact cause of the fire.

Meanwhile, the number of imported electric vehicles registered over the past two months has decreased by double digits compared to the same period last year.

On the 9th, the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association (KAIDA) announced that 6,868 imported electric vehicles, including Tesla, were newly registered in August and September. In August, 4,115 units were sold, and in September, even fewer at 2,753 units. This represents a sharp 40.1% decrease compared to 11,462 imported electric vehicles newly registered in August and September last year.

This is the first time in three years since 2021 (5,351 units) that the number of imported electric vehicles registered over the two months of August and September has failed to exceed 10,000 units. The recent significant decline in imported electric vehicles in Korea appears to be due to the electric vehicle chasm (a temporary demand stagnation) and safety concerns following the Mercedes-Benz electric vehicle fire that occurred in an underground parking lot in Incheon on August 1.