Canada News Network reported on December 29; In recent days, the news has been filled with various natural and man-made disasters tragedies during the Christmas holiday. However, as the New Year is approaching, South Korea has once again received bad news.
At around 1 pm local time on the 29th, a fatal fire broke out in Gwacheon City, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. The fire broke out in an elevated soundproof tunnel on a highway. Due to the closed environment of the tunnel, the fire quickly spread to several kilometers. The tunnel was filled with thick smoke and it was difficult to see where to stand. Under such circumstances, it was difficult for trapped vehicles to escape.
According to the latest statistics, the fire has caused at least 5 deaths and 137 injuries.
At present, the cause of the accident has not yet been determined , and multiple versions of reports are controversial.
Some Korean media initially reported that the cause of the accident was that a bus and a truck accidentally collided while driving. After the truck caught fire, the flames quickly ignited the entire tunnel. The five deceased people in this car accident all came from two accident vehicles.
The police described: "There was a recycling truck, which was suspected to have caught fire due to overheating of the engine, causing the tragedy."
The driving recorder screen shown by a survivor at the scene showed that the driver's seat of a truck was completely burned. Regardless of whether the truck collided with the bus or not, it is certain that the truck caught fire.
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The fire area was initially only in the lane where trucks were traveling, and the other two lanes could still travel normally. But the situation took a turn for the worse when the soundproof wall was ignited and the fire quickly spread.
According to the description of the onlookers at the interchange under the elevated tunnel: "The fire suddenly broke out, it was as fast as a 100-meter race."
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It can be seen that the fire area looks like a long snake, the entire tunnel is a fiery red, black smoke envelopes the entire sky, and the melted sound insulation wall continues to scatter sparks and debris downwards.
A driver who narrowly escaped death mentioned in an interview: "When everyone reacted, there were already drivers rolling down their windows and shouting to run away. Most of us whose cars were stuck in the middle of the tunnel chose He abandoned the car and ran away. Because the fire was so intense, he didn't have time to think about it. He just subconsciously swung his legs desperately. "If he hesitated for a while, the person would probably be as miserable as the car - burnt to char.
At the scene of the accident, many people stamped their feet anxiously: "There are too many cars in the tunnel, we can't drive out!"
It is reported that at least 44 cars were trapped in the tunnel.
Another survivor said in an interview: "Fortunately, my vehicle had just entered the tunnel. When I saw the blazing fire in front of me, I subconsciously decided to run for my life even if it was illegal to reverse the car. l3 According to on-site reports from Korean media, at least 30 people were sitting in a row on the roadside outside the tunnel, panting. They kept coughing and trying to cough up the black smoke they inhaled, including many young children. A survivor said: "When I was escaping, I saw a man in his 60s. His down jacket was roasted and his face was black..." Due to the extremely serious fire, the city's fire department has dispatched 77 fire trucks and 190 firefighters. Even the President of South Korea ordered that all efforts be made to conduct a thorough search and rescue. After more than 2 hours of hard work, the fire was finally put out. However, the current situation of some of the injured is not optimistic. Several people have varying degrees of burns on their faces and limbs. Reminiscent of the fact that Koreans also have the custom of celebrating New Year's Day and New Year's Eve, it is really unfortunate that these families are in trouble before the New Year. I pray that they can be healed safely. In the new year, I hope there will be less bad news and more good news.
