Korean Red Cross

Disaster Information : Fire in Goseong, Korea

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This is written for information only, and reflects the current situation and details available at this point. The Republic of Korea National Red Cross (KNRC) is responding to the needs of the affected people, and coordinating closely with government authorities.

The situation

According to the Gangwon Fire Headquarters, the fire broke out by an explosion of transformer on a road side in Goseong, Gangwon Province at around 19:17 on 5 April. The fire spread to a mountain and keep spreading widely throughout the region fanned by strong winds. The highest level alert (level 3) was issued at 19:44 on Thursday. This led to the evacuation of residents and guests of a nearby condominium. At least 1 person died and 11 people were injured from the fire, and the number of evacuated residents is more than 3,000. The government has utilized all available measures to cope with the fire. As of early Friday, the fire agency said 872 fire trucks and 3,250 firefighters from across the country had been mobilized.

KNRC action

After the fire broke out, KNRC immediately activated Disaster Response System at both headquarter and local chapter. The Gangwon chapter has mobilized a mobile kitchen, relief items, and volunteers to provide emergency service for evacuated people from the onset. More than 120 staff and volunteers have been on the ground, and 849 emergency relief kits, 350 blankets and 800 hot-meals have been distributed as of 07:00 on Friday.

Contact information

Youngjo Lee, Emergency Response & Safety Training Team, phone: +82-2-3705-3612,

email: kongjack@redcross.or.kr

Seunghoon Jung, International Relations Team, phone: +82-2-3705-3662,

email: sh.jung@redcross.or.kr