According to a report by the Korean Fire Department on July 17th, around 21:05 local time, a fire broke out in an apartment parking lot in Gwangju City, Gyeonggi Province, resulting in three deaths and 17 injuries.
One individual suffered from full-body burns, while another was unconscious.
The local fire department issued a second phase of response orders seven minutes after the fire started. More than 50 fire engines and hundreds of firefighters were dispatched from nearby fire stations to the scene, around 22:00. The second phase of response orders involves mobilizing up to 8 to 14 fire departments within a radius of 51 to 80 fire engines for firefighting.
However, since the fire occurred in a parking lot, some vehicles may still have the potential to reignite. Gwangju City sent out safety messages to all citizens, asking residents in affected areas not to leave their homes and to avoid nearby vehicles.
Residents near the site reported that explosions were heard continuously during the fire, and the flames spread among the parked vehicles inside the building. The Korean police plan to immediately investigate the cause of the fire after the firefighting efforts are completed.
It is understood that the apartment where the fire broke out was completed in July 2014, housing 45 families. (CCTV Reporter: Zhang Yun)