| Korea District Heating Corp. CEO Hwang Chang-hwa bows to apologize for the hot water pipe rupture accident at the Government Complex Sejong, Thursday, before a briefing on the results of an emergency check of pipelines across the country and the corporation's repair plans for old and dangerous pipes. / Yonhap |
By Kim Jae-heun
A total of 203 hot water pipes in the country were found to be fragile in cold weather during an emergency inspection, the Korea District Heating Corp. (KDHC) said, Thursday.
Sixteen of them were in very poor condition and could burst at any time.
The week-long inspection came after the rupture of a hot water pipe near Baekseok Station in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, on Dec. 5 that killed one and injured 55.
The KDHC said it checked 686 kilometers of heating pipes that are over 20 years old, or 32 percent of the 2,164 kilometers of pipelines installed across the country, which the public corporation manages.
In the inspection using thermal imaging cameras, 203 spots showed a temperature difference of more than 3 degrees Celsius between the pipe and the ground, which is a sign of vulnerability in winter. Sixteen of them, in particular, were revealed as very dangerous with more than 10 degrees temperature difference, increasing the chances of plumbing accidents.
"During the emergency check, we dug out five spots among the 16. Four pipelines were in fine condition while one leaked a little, so we replaced it," a KDHC official said, adding they plan to examine the remaining 11 soon.
The corporation plans to conduct detailed inspection of the 203 spots by Jan. 12.
It has not been confirmed what caused the pipe to burst in Goyang, but the KDHC believes pressure had compromised a weld in the 27-year-old rusted pipe.
The corporation has begun digging up 443 pipelines that were made using the same technique as the pipes in Goyang, with a plan to repair them or replace them with new pipes within this winter.
"We are currently discussing ways to compensate victims (of the Goyang accident) to provide funeral and medical expenses. Again, we sincerely apologize to the bereaved family, victims of the accident and Goyang citizens who have experienced inconvenience due to interruption to the heating supply," Hwang Chang-hwa, CEO of the KDHC, said in a media briefing.
The KDHC also promised to provide overall safety management policies in January based on the inspection results.
However, the inspections and the new policies will be applied only to the pipes managed by the KDHC, while about half of the nation's total heating pipelines are managed by local governments or affiliated agencies.
Two more accidents involving ruptured heating pipes took place in Mok-dong in Seoul and Gojan-dong in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively. Neither pipe was under the supervision of the KDHC but local authorities.
Fortunately, hot water leaking from the burst pipeline in Ansan flowed into a nearby drain and did not cause any harm. However, it halted the hot water and heating supply to 1,137 households nearby. They were restored over five hours later.
The pipeline rupture in Mok-dong also cut hot water and heating supply to 1,882 households in the region for 17 hours.