A fire that broke out at a Coupang logistics center in Incheon spread up the building's exterior wall to the seventh floor, and fire authorities issued a national fire mobilization order as they continued efforts to extinguish the blaze. Because the large logistics warehouse is stacked with large quantities of household goods and is filled with thick smoke and intense heat, entry into the interior is difficult and the firefighting is dragging on.
Jeon Jae-in, Director of the 119 Disaster Response Division at the Incheon Seobu Fire Station, said at an on-site briefing on the 18th, "The sixth floor where the fire occurred is a large logistics warehouse with a three-tier rack structure, and large amounts of combustibles such as household goods are stored," and added, "The fire has spread along the building's exterior wall to the seventh floor."
Director Jeon, explaining why the firefighting has continued for a long time, said, "The interior space of the warehouse is very large, and thick smoke and intense heat continue to occur, making it very difficult to secure visibility and enter the interior," and added, "We are checking temperatures frequently in case the fire spreads to the lower floors."
To prevent the fire from spreading, fire authorities established fire-spread control lines throughout the building and deployed excavators and forklifts to remove obstacles, while mobilizing special equipment such as unmanned breaching water cannons to carry out extinguishing operations. They also plan to investigate the exact ignition point, the building's interior structure, and whether firefighting facilities such as sprinklers and fire shutters operated, once the blaze is fully under control.
The fire started at about 6:54 a.m. on the 6th floor of Coupang Logistics Center No. 32 in Seoknam-dong, Seohae District, Incheon, on the 18th. The building where the fire occurred is an eight-story above-ground logistics center with a total floor area of about 299,000 square meters.
Fire authorities issued Response Level 1 at 9:15 a.m., followed by Response Level 2 at 12:25 p.m., and then issued a national fire mobilization order at 3:15 p.m. Accordingly, equipment such as high-rise ladder trucks and unmanned firefighting robots received additional support from Seoul, Gyeonggi, North Chungcheong, South Chungcheong, and Gangwon, and 386 personnel including firefighters and 142 pieces of equipment are currently deployed to continue extinguishing operations.
All 121 people, including logistics center employees, evacuated on their own at the time of the fire, and there have been no reported civilian casualties so far. However, one firefighter in his 40s who was extinguishing the fire using an aerial ladder truck inhaled smoke and was transported to a hospital, where the firefighter is receiving hyperbaric oxygen therapy.
Fire authorities plan to investigate the exact cause of the fire and the extent of the damage once the flames are fully contained.