Ministry of Public Safety and Security “Annually 76 fires occur, more than 1 person die”
Reporter Seo, Dong Myong | approved 2016.06.13 18:04
There is a saying that anything that can go wrong will go wrong, and that lightning does strike on a clear day.
Now that the summer heat has begun full-fledged, the statistics is out that lives are at risk if special care is not taken on using the fans or air conditioners.
On June 2nd, in Incheon City, Seo-Gu Yeon Hee Dong’s one residence, a fire occurred in the room where children were sleeping. The cause of the fire was traced to the fan. On June 5th, a fire started in the outdoor air conditioner unit of an 11-story building complex in Joo-Rae Dong, Busan City. The outdoor air conditioner unit crashed down to the parking lot causing damages to a car.
The Ministry of Public Safety and Security stated on the 13th that during past 5 years, the fire caused by overheating of fans and air conditioners were total 380 cases, and 7 human casualties. 33 persons were injured.
To restate its statistics, this means annually an average of 76 fires occurred from the overheating of fans or air conditioners, killing more than one person.
The experts view that these statistics are not few in numbers when one considers the use of air cooling equipment is concentrated in July and August.
Kim, Kwang Yong, Safety Planning Manager of Ministry of Public Safety & Security stated, "The air conditioner outdoor units that are installed near the sidewalk is exposed to pile ups of fallen leaves or litters thrown by passers-by that may cause fire" and "regularly checking the outdoor unit is needed," he said.
Kim also added, "The fires caused by fans in many cases are attributed to the overheating of the motors and of the air conditioners, the fire is caused by an electric short-circuit and thermal accumulation in the outdoor motor unit" and " the dust in the fans should be removed, and if the air conditioner motor area is hot, the use should be stopped temporarily until the motor is cooled off. "he said.
By Reporter Seo, Dong Myong dongseo0202@gmail.com
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