At the time the fire started, there were approximately 170 employees in the three-story building. The exact cause of the fire is currently under investigation, but an unnamed witness told South Korean media that he heard an explosion at the scene. The chief of the local fire department, Nam Tŭg-u, said that the flames engulfed the factory so quickly that people were jumping out of its windows before the firefighters even arrived at the scene, The Guardian reports on the event.
At first, the firemen could not enter the building due to fears that it would collapse, but at the same time they could not start extinguishing it while it contained stored sodium, which can explode when in contact with water. In the end, more than 200 kilograms of this substance were taken from the factory premises. Only then could the firefighters, of which there were more than 500 on the scene, begin to extinguish the fire. Two robots also helped during the intervention.
The South Korean Ministry of the Interior later reported that the fire claimed 14 lives, while another 25 people suffered serious injuries. The condition of the remaining 34 injured is not serious. Nine of the dead were found in a room on the third floor that served as a gymnasium locker room. Some of the bodies are so charred that DNA tests will be needed to identify them. According to rescuers, many were injured when jumping from the building.
The factory in Teđon belongs to the company Anjun Industrial, which produces valves for engines and supplies them to car companies such as Hyundai and Kia. The company’s CEO, Son Chu-hwan, said that the company will fully cooperate with the authorities and will review its security systems and inspections. Afterwards, he said, he will take all the necessary measures so that a similar incident does not happen again.
It is the worst fire at a South Korean factory since 2024, when flames at a lithium battery factory in Hwasong claimed 23 lives. The CEO of Aricell, which owned the factory, was later sentenced to fifteen years in prison.
