Gwangju Collapse Disaster: 9 Dead, 8 Seriously Injured... Jeon Hae-cheol "Thorough Investigation of Cause and Prevention of Recurrence"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

원본보기 아이콘

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] On the 9th, a tragic accident occurred in which a commercial building being demolished for a redevelopment project collapsed and crushed a bus, resulting in 9 deaths.

Seventeen people trapped in the bus were rescued in the collapse accident that day, but 9 of them died and 8 were seriously injured. The building collapsed and covered the bus, with most of the passengers trapped under the rubble. So far, 9 people have died and 8 have sustained serious injuries. According to the fire authorities, after rescuing 17 people including the driver and passengers from the city bus buried under the building debris, no additional buried victims have been found to date.

On the afternoon of the 9th, a building under demolition in Hakdong, Dong-gu, Gwangju collapsed, and debris from the building poured onto the road, burying city buses and others. Photo by JTBC, screenshot from 'Newsroom'

원본보기 아이콘

Jeon Hae-cheol, Minister of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, visited the site around 11:30 p.m. on the day of the accident and received a report on the recovery situation from the Gwangju Fire Safety Headquarters chief. He then emphasized to the fire department, police, and local governments, "Please thoroughly focus on life rescue by mobilizing all possible equipment and personnel to check if there are any people still in need of rescue."

He added, "Identify the victims, provide detailed information, assign dedicated officials to the families of the victims, and do your best to provide convenience. We will also work with related ministries to conduct a thorough investigation into the cause of the accident and prepare measures to prevent recurrence."

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety has operated a situation management team and dispatched a situation manager to the site after the accident. It also held situation review meetings with related agencies such as the Blue House, Ministry of the Interior and Safety, Fire Agency, and Police Agency to manage the recovery efforts.

The collapse accident occurred around 4:22 p.m. during the demolition process of the building. A city bus, number 54 Unlim, which was stopped at the bus stop in front of the building, was buried under the building debris, trapping the passengers.

Reviewing the district office CCTV footage confirmed that as soon as the bus stopped at the bus stop, the building collapsed and covered the bus. It was confirmed that there were no other pedestrians on the street. Contrary to eyewitness statements that two passenger cars were buried, the CCTV showed that the passenger cars had stopped just before the collapse.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

원본보기 아이콘

The building workers were conducting demolition work by placing an excavator on the top of the 5-story building. They demolished the structure floor by floor, moving from the inside outward. There were two workers and an excavator on site, and two signalmen were stationed nearby. Although there was a protective barrier, the building suddenly collapsed toward the roadside and covered the city bus.

Since the building was under demolition, no other people were inside. The eight workers reportedly sensed abnormal signs during the demolition with the excavator and evacuated. That day was the first day of the dismantling work.

After 7 p.m., the first buried victim rescued was declared dead, and the other buried victims found afterward were transported to hospitals in cardiac arrest but died. Five people rescued after 8 p.m. were found deceased.

The rescued passengers include four women in their 70s, one man in his 70s, two women in their 60s, and one man in his 50s, totaling eight people. They were rescued early in the operation through a hole in the front windshield of the bus. They were transferred to Jeonnam National University Hospital (3), Gwangju Christian Hospital (3), Chosun University Hospital (1), and Donga Hospital (1).

The police plan to form a dedicated investigation team to investigate the demolition building collapse accident.

Meanwhile, the area where the collapse accident occurred is the Hakdong 4 District redevelopment site. On a 126,433㎡ site, 19 apartment buildings with 2 basement floors and 29 floors above ground, totaling 2,282 households, are planned. The construction company is Hyundai Development Company, and the demolition of the building was carried out by Hansol Enterprise.

© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.