National Fire Agency Administrator Kim Seung-ryong said, "We plan to add 18 more unmanned firefighting robots over the next two years and, in the mid to long term, expand their deployment to fire headquarters in cities and provinces nationwide."
Administrator Kim said at a briefing with the press corps on the 27th, "'Hard-to-access disasters,' where access by firefighters is difficult due to toxic gases and explosion risks, are surging," and stated accordingly.
The unmanned firefighting robot was built by adding firefighting equipment to Hyundai Rotem's multipurpose unmanned vehicle "HR-Sherpa." It can be sent in place of firefighters into enclosed underground spaces or large spaces such as factories and logistics warehouses to conduct firefighting and search operations.
Hyundai Motor Group donated four unmanned firefighting robots this year, and one each was deployed to the National 119 Rescue Headquarters' Seoul metropolitan 119 special rescue unit and Yeongnam 119 special rescue unit, the Hwaseong Fire Station in Gyeonggi, and the South Chungcheong Fire Headquarters.
Administrator Kim also emphasized thorough identification of the cause and the preparation of measures to prevent a recurrence in connection with the line-of-duty death of a firefighter at the fire scene of a seafood processing plant in Wando, South Jeolla, this month.
A "joint firefighting investigation team" of 26 experts is conducting a 30-day in-depth analysis and plans to review special combustion phenomena related to sandwich panel structures that exacerbated the damage to draw up institutional improvement measures.
Administrator Kim said, "We will thoroughly share the investigation process with the bereaved families and make every effort to take responsible follow-up measures, including providing psychological counseling for members and, when necessary, simultaneous healing."
The National Fire Agency said it would complete a shift to a response system centered on field personnel safety using artificial intelligence (AI) and robots. To accelerate the introduction of new technologies, it will fully switch the regulatory system in the fire prevention sector to a "negative list" approach. The intent is to allow everything except what is explicitly prohibited by law.
The National Fire Agency also decided to strengthen the control tower role by reinforcing the personnel and authority of the "Central 119 Emergency Medical Control Center" to prevent delays in emergency room transport. If a regional 119 emergency medical control center cannot find a hospital for transport, the central center will immediately step in to directly arrange a medical institution that can accept the patient on a nationwide basis.
Administrator Kim said, "To ensure that the heartbreaking sacrifice is not in vain, we will accelerate the introduction of advanced equipment that can guarantee field personnel safety," adding, "At the same time, with the Central Emergency Medical Control Center and an integrated dispatch system for fire helicopters as two pillars, we will complete a dense safety net so that anyone, anywhere in the country, can receive optimal emergency medical services."