(3rd LD) 1 dead, 17 injured in pharmaceutical factory fire

All News 22:04 September 30, 2022

(ATTN: CHANGES headline, lead, UPDATES with latest details; REPLACES photo)

HWASEONG, South Korea, Sept. 30 (Yonhap) -- An explosion sparked a fire at a pharmaceutical factory in Hwaseong, south of Seoul, on Friday, leaving one person dead and 17 others injured, officials said.

The fire broke out at the Hwail Pharmaceutical Co. factory in Hwaseong, about 50 kilometers south of Seoul, at 2:22 p.m. and dozens of emergency calls came in reporting they heard the sound of an explosion, fire officials said. They said the fire was extinguished by 6:23 p.m.

Thick smoke rises from a fire at the plant of a pharmaceutical company in Hwaseong, about 50 kilometers south of Seoul, on Sept. 30, 2022. (Yonhap)

Officials said one person was killed and 17 others were injured. Officials said the deceased was a person in their late 20s who initially went missing and was later located behind the factory. Of the 17 injured people, four sustained serious injuries, while 13 others suffered smoke inhalation.

All 18 were Hwail Pharmaceutical employees. Officials said about 40 employees were working at the factory when the fire started.

The explosion came from the third floor of the five-story building, fire officials said.

Ninety-two units of fire trucks, water pump vehicles and other equipment were sent to the scene, along with 201 firefighters and other rescue workers, officials said.

Police and firefighters plan to look into the exact cause of the fire. The factory did not have sprinklers. Standing five stories tall with each floor coming in at under 1,000 square meters, the factory was not required to be equipped with sprinklers or other automatic fire suppression systems.