More than 1,100 fires have occurred in public rental housing managed by the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) over the past seven years, resulting in over 250 casualties.
According to data submitted by LH to Yoo Sang-beom, a member of the National Assembly's Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee, there were a total of 1,142 fires in LH public rental housing from 2020 to September of this year. The incidents led to 26 fatalities and 232 injuries, totaling 258 casualties.
The data indicates that the most significant casualties occurred in permanent rental housing, which primarily houses vulnerable populations.
Of the aging rental housing built before August 2017, permanent rental units account for 15.3% (137,454 units) of the total, yet they were responsible for 46.2% (12 deaths) of the total fire fatalities.
When calculated per 100,000 units, the death rate in permanent rental housing is 8.73, which is six times higher than that of national rental housing (1.44) and eight times higher than that of other rental housing (1.09).
Yoo pointed out that the high casualty rate in permanent rental complexes is largely due to the presence of vulnerable residents such as the elderly, children, and people with disabilities, along with outdated fire safety equipment.
In fact, among the 109 permanent rental complexes that experienced fires in the past seven years, 106 were using 'old model detectors' that do not provide precise information on the specific unit affected, only indicating the floor or area of the fire.
Yoo stated, "The fire fatality rate in permanent rental housing, where vulnerable populations are concentrated, is significantly higher than in other rental housing. Given that old equipment makes it difficult to quickly identify the fire's origin, relevant authorities, including the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Fire Agency, must conduct a thorough inspection and improve the equipment."
Additionally, on October 12, it was noted that more than 70% of the 10 fire-related deaths in LH rental housing occurred in buildings without sprinklers. Rep. Bok Gi-wang, also a member of the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee, remarked that while most fire fatalities occurred in areas lacking sprinklers, the installation rate of simple sprinklers is only 3.4%.
As concerns continue to grow about the safety of aging public rental housing that houses vulnerable populations, there are increasing calls for effective measures to be implemented promptly.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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