President Lee Jae-myung on the 21st visited the fire scene at an automobile manufacturing plant in Daedeok District, Daejeon, where there were major casualties, to inspect the damage and the search and rescue operations for the missing.
Upon arriving on site, the president received briefings from fire officials on the timeline of actions and the status of casualties, including the dead. The president asked, "The building debris has collapsed; how will you find the missing?"
Looking at the outer wall at the point of the building collapse where the missing are presumed to be, the president said, "It's all melted," and added, "Please make sure there is no secondary accident."
When the president asked, "What caused the fire to spread so rapidly?" Kim Seung-ryong, head of the Central Emergency Rescue Control Group (commissioner of the National Fire Agency), answered, "The building's sandwich panel structure intensified the fire."
At the site, the president also asked, "How are the victims' families doing?" The president told the firefighters on scene, "Thank you for your hard work," and offered encouraging handshakes to the crew.
Earlier, at about 1:17 p.m. on the 20th, a fire broke out at Anjeon Industry, an auto parts manufacturing plant, and was extinguished after 10 hours and 30 minutes.
So far, 11 people have died and 3 are missing. Authorities are continuing the search for the missing. The number of injured stands at 59, including two firefighters hurt while fighting the blaze.
Earlier, after receiving a report on the fire the previous day, the president ordered the full mobilization of available resources, including equipment and personnel, to immediately manage the accident and rescue people.