Investigators are combing through the wreckage after a fire at a lithium factory in South Korea killed 23 people
Investigators combed the charred wreckage of a South Korean lithium factory on Tuesday to find the cause of a massive fire that killed 23 people in one of the country’s worst factory disasters in years.
The fire service said 23 people have now been confirmed dead, including 17 Chinese nationals – one fewer than the initial number of 18, while identification work is underway.
“We plan to confirm the identities of the victims by collecting DNA from their bodies,” firefighter Kim Jin-young told reporters.
The government launched its formal investigation on Tuesday, involving ministries and departments from across the board, to determine the exact cause of the fire, with investigators entering the building.
More than 100 people were working at the factory when workers heard a series of explosions from the second floor, where lithium-ion batteries were being inspected and packaged.
CCTV footage from the entrance to the factory building showed white smoke filling the room in less than 20 seconds as people rushed outside, Yonhap news agency reported.
Toxic fumes likely quickly overwhelmed workers in the area where the fire started, the fire department said, adding that because it was a lithium fire, workers’ efforts to extinguish it would not have worked.
Park Soon-kwan, CEO of Aricell, the owner of the lithium battery factory, apologized for the fire on Tuesday and said the company would “support the needs of the victims’ families in every way possible.”
He said the company would cooperate with investigators, adding that it had installed dry powder fire extinguishers throughout the building and held regular safety training for employees.
Xing Haiming, China’s ambassador to Seoul, visited the site of the fire late Monday and called it an “unfortunate and heartbreaking” incident but said he had “a good discussion with the Korean government” to prevent a recurrence.
“It is hoped that South Korean companies will learn a painful lesson, refrain from similar incidents in the future and seriously ensure the safety of Chinese citizens in South Korea,” he said.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol also visited the disaster site late Monday and ordered authorities to check similar factories that process chemicals and “take measures to prevent such accidents from happening again.”
A spokeswoman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry expressed “deep sorrow for the people who died” during a regular press conference on Tuesday.
“China has asked South Korea to determine the cause of the accident as soon as possible, make every effort to treat the injured, deal with the aftermath and provide assistance to the families of Chinese victims,” Mao Ning said .
Lithium batteries burn hot and fast and are difficult to control with conventional fire suppression methods.
South Korea is a major producer of batteries, including those used in electric vehicles.
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