1 in 4 Multi-use Facilities in Gyeonggi Province Found With Defective Fire Safety Equipment, Including Damaged Fire Doors

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Park No-hun] About 1 in 4 multi-use facilities in the Gyeonggi region, such as accommodations, were found by fire authorities to be poorly maintaining fire safety equipment, including removing fire detectors and damaging fire doors.

The Gyeonggi Fire and Disaster Headquarters announced on the 30th that on the 27th, it conducted a comprehensive crackdown on the "3 Major Illegal Acts" targeting 410 multi-use facilities in the province, including accommodations, cultural assembly facilities (museums, exhibition halls, etc.), water recreation facilities, and training facilities, detecting 98 facilities (23.9%) and taking action on 124 violations.

The 3 Major Illegal Acts include obstructing fire safety equipment, blocking or damaging emergency fire doors, and illegal parking.

Looking at violation cases, one accommodation facility in the province removed fire detectors and did not reinstall them, and another accommodation facility was caught having stacked large quantities of items on the stairs.

Fire door damage cases were also reported. One cultural assembly facility in the province installed door stoppers on fire doors or removed door closers designed to automatically close doors, and a sports center was caught with damaged fire doors.

The Fire Prevention, Installation and Maintenance of Fire Safety Equipment, and Safety Management Act (Fire Safety Equipment Act) stipulates that violations of closing and obstructing fire safety equipment are punishable by imprisonment for up to 5 years or a fine of up to 50 million won.

Additionally, arbitrary operation of fire pump power control panels and receivers is subject to administrative fines of up to 3 million won.

Earlier, the provincial Fire and Disaster Headquarters announced that it would mobilize all available personnel to conduct a comprehensive crackdown on the 3 Major Illegal Acts at multi-use facilities in the province on that day during the summer vacation season.

A total of 205 teams, 530 personnel (2 facilities per team) from the headquarters, patrol teams from each fire station, and fire investigation teams were mobilized for this comprehensive crackdown.

In accordance with the Gyeonggi Governor's pledge to expand special fire investigations to eliminate hazards that threaten the safety of provincial residents, the Fire and Disaster Headquarters is conducting comprehensive crackdowns throughout the year, with inspection targets determined by period.

An official from the Gyeonggi Fire and Disaster Headquarters said, "Many defective facilities were still detected at multi-use facilities frequently visited by residents," and "We will strictly penalize illegal acts threatening resident safety in accordance with fire-related laws."