The Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) said Wednesday that it will carry out emergency safety inspections of apartment buildings in the city in the wake of last weekend's fatal fire at a residential unit in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi Province.
According to SMG, the inspection will run through Feb. 3 and almost 5,000 buildings will come under scrutiny.
"This is to prevent a possible disaster like that in Uijeongbu," an official said.
In Saturday's accident in Uijeongbu, the fire burnt down three apartment buildings, killing four people and injuring almost 150. Most victims suffered from burns or toxic gas inhalation.
Buildings with small-sized one or two room units are a popular choice of living in Seoul and metropolitan areas thanks to their convenience and low rents. The former Lee Myung-bak government allowed these types of buildings to be constructed to relieve the financial burden on young people, but the eased regulations resulted in negligence regarding safety.
The city said the priority of the inspection will be to check emergency exits, fireproof materials, the distance between buildings, fire partitions, insurance and fire truck access.
The SMG said it will also look into whether buildings have sprinkler systems. Fire safety experts say more lives could have been saved these were in the Uijeongbu buildings.
Buildings materials will also come under a tight examination. In the Uijeongbu case , the exterior walls of the buildings were coated with a Styrofoam and cement mix, which allowed the fire to spread quickly.
Small alleys and illegal parking were also blamed as they delayed access to the buildings for fire trucks, increasing the death toll.
According to the Ministry of Public Safety and Security, fire trucks cannot run on some 1,600 sections of roads nationwide because they are either too narrow or illegally parked cars or other facilities prevent them from passing.
About 60 percent of such sections are in residential areas, followed by old commercial areas, such as traditional markets. Current building regulations require the main road in a district to be at least 4 meters wide to ensure fire truck access. It was 6 meters until 2009 when the Lee administration eased the rules.
Korean Language
당정청, 고층아파트 화재대책 논의…"안전규제 강화"
이군현 '2월 국회서 안전관련 문제있는 법규 재개정'
청와대와 정부, 새누리당은 14일 오후 협의회를 열어 의정부 아파트 화재 사고로 안전 사각지대임을 다시 드러낸 고층아파트 화재 안전 대책을 논의한다.
당·정·청은 이날 회의에서 완강기 설치 의무가 없는 11층 이상 층에 완강기 설치를 의무화하고 비상 탈출로를 추가 확보하는 한편 스프링클러 설치를 강화하고 소방차 진입로를 확대 정비하는 방안 등을 논의할 것으로 전해졌다.
이군현 사무총장은 이날 국회에서 열린 최고의원중진연석회의에서 '당 정책위와 정부 당국도 피해 지역 주민들의 요구를 전향적으로 검토해주길 부탁한다'고 당부했다.
'관련 상임위에서 경제 규제를 과감하게 제거하되 안전 규제는 강화하는 방향으로 소관 안전관련 법안을 꼼꼼히 챙겨 문제 있는 조항은 2월 임시국회에서 재개정해야 한다'고 강조했다. (연합뉴스)