South Korean authorities yesterday were investigating what caused a blaze that killed 38 construction workers in one of the nation’s deadliest fires in years.
The explosion on Wednesday that swept through a warehouse being built in Icheon also injured 10 others.
At the time of the fire, 78 workers had been inside the warehouse and all have been accounted for, official Park Su-jong said.
Photo: Reuters
Twenty-nine of the bodies had been identified and DNA tests were being conducted for the rest, Park said.
Of those identified, all were male, and they included two Pakistanis and one Chinese. The others were South Korean.
A team of fire, police and other officials entered the warehouse yesterday morning to examine exactly what triggered the blaze.
Authorities presume an ignition of oil mist caused an explosion too sudden for workers to escape, Icheon Fire Chief Seo Seung-hyun said.
Police officers separately were investigating if the construction involved any breaches of building regulations.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in voiced regret that another massive blaze had occurred in spite of new government safety measures following fatal fires in 2017 and 2018, presidential Blue House spokesman Kang Min-seok said.
“It is regrettable that a similar accident reoccurred. It means we’ve not learned the lesson from previous accidents,” Moon was quoted as saying by Kang.
A fire at a sports center in Jecheon in December 2017 killed 29 people and injured 40. A month later, a hospital fire occurred in Miryang, killing 45 people and injuring 147.
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