President Lee Jae-myung promoted and appointed Choi Yong-cheol, acting National Fire Agency Administrator (Vice Administrator), as National Fire Agency Administrator on the 13th.
Choi, the new Administrator, was born in 1970 and is from Boeun County, North Chungcheong. He graduated from Cheongju High School and Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. He later earned a master's from Ajou University Graduate School of Public Policy and a master's in fire and disaster administration from Oklahoma State University in the United States. He also completed a doctoral program in public administration at Kyonggi University.
Choi, the new Administrator, entered public service in 1999 as a member of the 10th class of fire service officers and later served as head of the Uiwang Fire Station in Gyeonggi (2017), head of the Gwangju Fire Station in Gyeonggi (2019), head of the Sejong Fire Headquarters (2021), director of response coordination at the National Fire Agency (2023), acting president in charge at the Central Fire Academy (2025), head of the South Jeolla Fire Headquarters (2025), and acting commissioner in charge at the Gyeonggi Fire and Disaster Headquarters (2025).
Choi, the new Administrator, has served as acting National Fire Agency Administrator since former Administrator Kim Seung-ryong resigned on his own in June.
The presidential office called Choi, the new Administrator, "a fire expert who has worked both on the front lines of rescue operations and in key policy departments for 27 years." It added, "In line with the national objective of putting people's lives and safety first, he is expected to build a thorough disaster prevention and response system."