A fire in an oil tank that occurred at the Ulsan Onsan Industrial Complex on the 11th was extinguished in three hours. The large flames were controlled in about two hours, which the fire authorities attributed to the 'large-volume spray system' introduced in 2022. This device deployed in Ulsan can spray the equivalent of 26 large fire trucks' worth of water.
According to the fire authorities on the 12th, a report was received that a fire broke out at the oil storage tank of United Terminal Korea in Onsan-eup, Ulsan, at 11:15 a.m. the previous day.
The Onsan Industrial Complex is one of the main petroleum and chemical complexes in South Korea, housing the refinery S-OIL. United Terminal Korea, where the fire occurred, handles unloading, receiving, storing, and shipping of liquid cargo. The tank that caught fire has a capacity of 2.5 million liters and contained solvent.
Firefighters arrived at the scene at 11:26 a.m., nine minutes after the fire report was received. A total of 185 personnel and 75 pieces of equipment, including three helicopters, one large-volume spray system, and seven vessels, were deployed for firefighting efforts. The large flames were controlled at 1:33 p.m., just over two hours after the report was received, and the fire was completely extinguished at 2:19 p.m., more than three hours later.
Compared to the 17 hours it took to extinguish a similar fire at the Goyang oil depot, this incident represents a reduction of 14 hours. The fire at the Goyang oil depot of the Korea Oil Pipeline Corporation in Deogyang-gu, Goyang, occurred at 10:56 a.m. on Oct. 7, 2018, and was fully extinguished at 3:58 a.m. the following day. The tank, which had a capacity of 4.9 million liters, contained gasoline. At that time, the fire authorities deployed 243 pieces of equipment, including five helicopters, and 790 personnel for firefighting. Although the size of the burning tank was different, one-third of the equipment and one-fourth of the personnel were deployed, resulting in a significant reduction in firefighting time.
In this regard, the National Fire Agency noted that "the large-volume spray system played a significant role." The large flames were controlled just 15 minutes after this equipment was deployed on site. The fire authorities initially deployed the large-volume spray system in January 2022 to effectively respond to large oil tank fires like the Goyang oil depot fire. Currently, two systems are stationed at the Ulsan Central 119 Rescue Headquarters Chemical Center, which has numerous large-scale oil storage and handling facilities, and an additional system is planned for deployment at the Seosan 119 Chemical Rescue Center in the first half of this year.
One large-volume spray system stationed in Ulsan can discharge 45,000 liters of firefighting water per minute, while another can discharge 30,000 liters per minute, reaching up to 130 meters. This is equivalent to the combined capacity of 26 large fire trucks, each discharging more than 2,800 liters per minute. The large-volume spray system utilizes submersible pumps, allowing it to draw water from lakes, rivers, or seawater without limitation for firefighting.
This equipment is stationed only in Ulsan and is mobilized during major fires or accidents. In September 2022, it was able to quickly drain water when the cold stream in Pohang flooded the underground parking lot of an APT. building due to Typhoon Hinnamno, saving lives. It also contributed to the rapid extinguishment of a fire at Hankook Tire in Daejeon in March 2023.
The National Fire Agency stated, "A large oil storage tank fire can rapidly spread to adjacent tanks, so it must be extinguished with a significant amount of firefighting water initially," adding, "In the future, we plan to deploy them regionally across the country for efficient utilization."