This photo shows the aftermath of a fire that broke out at a motel in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, Thursday, killing seven people. Yonhap

Korea continues to experience blind spots in fire safety, with nearly 400 incidents occurring in accommodation facilities each year due to inadequate measures, such as missing sprinklers, according to recent data.

According to the National Fire Agency's National Fire Information System, Sunday, 1,843 fires occurred in accommodation facilities between 2019 and 2023, causing 387 casualties and 32 deaths.

By cause, electrical factors accounted for the largest number of incidents with 708 cases, followed by carelessness with 654 cases. Within the carelessness category, cigarette butts were responsible for 232 cases. Additionally, there were 53 cases of arson and 63 cases of suspected arson.

These casualties and fire accidents persist due to inadequate safety facilities, such as missing sprinklers.

Typically installed on the ceiling or wall of a building, a sprinkler extinguishes a fire by dispersing pressurized water in all directions through a piping system.

Although sprinklers cannot completely extinguish a fire on their own, they have been proven to play a crucial role in controlling and suppressing the fire until the fire brigade arrives.

For example, according to the Gyeonggi Fire and Disaster Headquarters, sprinkler systems quickly extinguished 943 fires in their early stages between 2017 and 2021, preventing an estimated 9.6 billion won ($7.2 million) in property damage. This means that over this five-year period, more than 900 fires were prevented from escalating into major disasters, thanks to the sprinklers installed in buildings.

Additionally, a study published by the Fire and Disaster Prevention Association indicates that the benefits of installing sprinklers far exceed the initial investment costs. The study found that the payback period for recovering the full cost of sprinkler installation is about one-twentieth of the building's lifespan, with the utility of sprinklers estimated to be more than twice the cost.

In response to the growing recognition of the importance of sprinklers, regulations have been in place since 2018 to mandate their installation in buildings exceeding six stories.

However, this regulation applies only to buildings constructed after 2018, leaving a significant safety gap in older structures that remain vulnerable to large-scale fire damage.

For instance, sprinklers were not installed or operational during the blaze at the Arisel plant in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province last month, while the underground parking lot fire at Cheongna apartment in Incheon was only extinguished after causing significant property damage.

In response, calls are growing to regulate and mandate sprinkler installation and management.

Rep. Koh Dong-jin of the ruling People Power Party (PPP) recently submitted a bill to the National Assembly that requires the installation of sprinkler facilities in aging accommodation facilities.

The bill stipulates that facility officials should install sprinklers by the end of 2027 and allows state and local governments to support all or part of the installation costs.