The government will mandate the installation of sprinkler systems and alarm facilities in all underground parking lots to prevent damage from electric vehicle fires. It will also encourage the use of fire-resistant ceiling or column finishing materials within underground parking lots.
The National Fire Agency announced a comprehensive fire safety plan for electric vehicles in underground parking lots on the 27th.
The measures unveiled by the National Fire Agency on this day are follow-up actions to the electric vehicle fire that occurred in an underground parking lot at an apartment complex in Seo-gu, Incheon, last August.
The comprehensive plan consists of four main strategies and 19 tasks.
First, the standards for installing fire safety facilities in underground parking lots where electric vehicles can be parked have been improved. It requires the installation of fire-fighting and alarm facilities in all underground parking lots.
Additionally, sprinkler systems will be mandated, and smoke detectors and early response heads must be installed in groups of at least two per parking space.
However, small parking lots will be allowed to install consolidation sprinklers and standalone alarm-type detectors.
It also clearly defined the installation of piping connected to the sprinkler system's water supply. Until now, there were no specific regulations, causing some installations to prioritize convenience over the proper supply of extinguishing water.
Measures to prevent the spread of fire within underground parking lots have also been established. Fire-fighting pipes must be equipped with insulation materials exceeding flame retardant requirements, and the fire resistance of the finishing materials for ceilings, walls, and columns inside the underground parking lots will be strengthened.
In addition, standards will be established for the location of electric vehicle charging areas to facilitate fire-fighting activities within underground parking lots.
Moreover, efforts will be made to enhance fire-fighting equipment and develop advanced tools. Standards for the possession of three types of electric vehicle fire suppression equipment, including mobile water tanks, broadcasting devices, and smothering covers, will be established, and equipment will be strengthened beyond these standards.
Hong Young-geun, head of the National Fire Agency's Fire Prevention Division, noted, "We will do our utmost to enhance fire safety for electric vehicles and underground parking lots as a whole."