Seoul, Jun. 24, (dpa/GNA) – At least 22 people died and eight others were injured in a major fire at a South Korean lithium battery factory near Seoul, the fire brigade said on Monday.
One person is still registered as missing. Among the victims, 20 were of foreign origin, including 18 Chinese nationals and one person from Laos, the fire brigade said. The identity of another foreign worker remains unknown.
Most of the victims died when they were trapped by the fire. The bodies of the victims were retrieved from the multi-storey building in the city of Hwaseong, some 45 kilometres south of Seoul.
South Korean television footage showed a series of small explosions, with flames and thick clouds of smoke billowing out of the burning building before the fire was brought under control after several hours.
Authorities suggested that the fire might have been caused by the explosion of a battery cell. The initial call came from a worker who had managed to escape in time, police said.
Investigations into the cause of the accident are ongoing, police said.
It is believed that there were approximately 102 people in the building at the time of the incident. Most of the victims were found on the factory’s second floor.
According to reports from the national news agency Yonhap, this incident is one of the most serious accidents at a chemical plant in South Korea.
In 1989, 16 people were killed by explosions at a chemical plant in the southern city of Yeosu.
Eight people died in Cheongju in 2012 when a chemical solvent exploded in a plant owned by LG Chem.