At about 6:10 p.m. on the 14th, a fire at a building in Sogong-dong, Jung District, Seoul, was fully extinguished after 3 hours and 25 minutes. The fire left three people seriously injured and seven with minor injuries. Most are believed to be foreign nationals.
According to the Jung District Office and fire authorities, a report came in to the Jungbu Fire Station in Seoul in the afternoon that "a building in Sogong-dong is on fire."
Firefighters issued a Level 1 response at 6:36 p.m., 26 minutes after the report, and contained the blaze, achieving full extinguishment at 9:35 p.m. The scene saw 110 firefighters and 31 pieces of equipment deployed.
The blaze left three people seriously injured and seven with minor injuries. The three seriously injured were taken to hospitals, and the seven with minor injuries received first aid. The seriously injured are a man in his 50s, a woman in her 50s, and a woman in her 20s, and they are reportedly unconscious. Of the 10 injured, nine are believed to be foreigners, and the identity of the remaining one is being verified.
The building that caught fire has one basement level and seven aboveground floors, with the 3rd, 6th, and 7th floors operating as guesthouse-style accommodations. Among them, the 3rd and 6th floors are said to be capsule-hotel type.
At the time of the fire, 45 people had checked in on the 3rd floor. Of them, all 19 Koreans have been confirmed safe, and of the 26 believed to be foreigners, fire authorities are confirming the whereabouts of 16, excluding the 10 injured.
The exact cause of the fire will be investigated through a joint inspection later.
Jung District sent a safety text, saying, "A large amount of smoke is occurring due to the building fire suppression," and, "Please be mindful of smoke inhalation by wearing masks and take detours."
Due to the fire, traffic is currently restricted on the section from the City Hall intersection on Sejong-daero 18-gil to Namdaemun-ro 7-gil, and from Daehanmun on Sogong-ro to Namdaemun-ro 7-gil to the Sogong Building.
Meanwhile, Minister of the Interior and Safety Yoon Ho-jung and Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon urged the utmost efforts in stabilizing the scene and supporting victims.
Minister Yoon issued an emergency directive: "Mobilize all available personnel and equipment from the National Fire Agency, Korean National Police Agency, Seoul City, and Jung District to make every effort for lifesaving and fire suppression."
Mayor Oh also issued an emergency directive: "Do your utmost to stabilize the scene, and put every effort into necessary support such as temporary housing assistance and hospital transport so that victims, including foreign tourists, do not experience inconvenience."