At about 10:16 a.m. on the 10th, ceiling finishing materials collapsed on the second floor of a commercial building in Gwaneum-dong, Buk District, Daegu (Dong-A Ilbo). On the second floor a distributor was holding a promotional event selling kitchenware and other goods to seniors, and 66 people evacuated outside (Dong-A Ilbo). The injured were counted at 38, and 9 were taken to hospital (Yonhap, SBS). Most had minor injuries, and no deaths were reported (Gangwon Domin Ilbo). It was first reported that the ceiling of a first-floor supermarket had collapsed, but the site was confirmed to be the second floor. The building was completed 32 years ago, and because of its small size it was not subject to the periodic safety inspection requirement (Yonhap). The Daegu Metropolitan Police Agency formed a 33-member dedicated investigation team and will hold a joint forensic inspection with the NFS on the 11th (Kyunghyang Shinmun, Yonhap).
The cause is not yet known, but the accident asks how far small, aging buildings with no inspection requirement are left unattended. It is also a problem that a promotional event drawing many elderly people was held in such a building. SBS reported that an ‘empty space’ spared it a tragedy. If the same thing happens again, the outcome could be different.
If your parents often go to promotional halls or sales events, check together whether the venue is in an old building and where the emergency exits are. A habit of looking for the exits first when you enter an event hall helps.
Establishing the cause comes first. Responsibility must not be asserted before the inspection results.
It has already come out that many buildings have no inspection requirement. Regardless of the cause, the system should be fixed first.
The ‘rat noise’ is testimony, not a cause. Before the inspection, possibilities such as water leakage, construction defects and load are all open. There are three things to watch today. The first findings of the joint inspection, the report and safety measures of the event organizer, and whether the government says it will widen the range of small buildings covered by inspections.
Yonhap (injuries, response, inspection requirement, 10/10) · Dong-A Ilbo (time of occurrence, event, number evacuated, 10/10) · Kyunghyang Shinmun (dedicated investigation team, joint inspection, 10/10) · Korea Economic Daily (president's order, 10/10) · SBS (scale of injuries, empty space, 10/10) · Gangwon Domin Ilbo (minor injuries, 10/10)
Ceiling collapses at Daegu commercial building, injuring 38. It happened during a sales event for seniors
No deaths have been reported. The 32-year-old building was not subject to mandatory periodic safety inspections, and a joint forensic inspection is scheduled for today
At about 10:16 a.m. on the 10th, ceiling finishing materials collapsed all at once on the second floor of a commercial building in Gwaneum-dong, Buk District, Daegu (Dong-A Ilbo). It was first reported that the ceiling of a first-floor supermarket had fallen, but the actual site was the second floor of the same building. The supermarket had closed at the end of last month, and on the second floor a distributor was holding a promotional event selling kitchenware and other household goods to seniors (Dong-A Ilbo, SBS). The materials kept falling for about 10 seconds (Yonhap), and the 66 people at the venue evacuated outside. The injured described the moment: “There was a rumbling sound, then the ceiling came crashing down” (Yonhap, SBS). The number of injured was first counted at 36, then rose to 38, and 9 were taken to hospital (Yonhap, SBS). Most were reported to have minor injuries, an elderly person in their 70s was also hurt, and no deaths were reported (Dong-A Ilbo, Gangwon Domin Ilbo). Fire authorities began rescue work at the scene right after the report (Yonhap), and SBS reported that an ‘empty space’ above the ceiling spared the building a bigger tragedy. It happened on the morning of the second day of the Hangeul Day holiday.
President Lee Jae-myung ordered “all-out efforts to rescue lives” (Korea Economic Daily, Kyunghyang Shinmun), and the prime minister promised swift transport of the injured and measures to prevent a recurrence (Yonhap). The Daegu Metropolitan Police Agency formed a 33-member dedicated investigation team headed by the Regional Investigation Unit chief, and will hold a joint forensic inspection today with the National Forensic Service (NFS) (Kyunghyang Shinmun, Yonhap). The cause has not yet emerged. Some of the injured said that before the accident they heard a sound as if rats were running above the ceiling (Dong-A Ilbo, Korea Economic Daily), but there is no evidence this was the cause. The issue is building management. The 32-year-old building was small and so was not subject to the periodic safety inspection requirement (Yonhap). How an event gathering elderly people came to be held on the floor above a closed supermarket, and who last inspected the facility, are also subjects of the investigation. Korea Economic Daily described it as a ‘bolt from the blue’ striking elderly people gathered in an old building. Calls may arise to close the blind spot in inspections of small, aging buildings. How the building owner and the event company divided their safety duties also has to be sorted out. Today, the first findings of the joint inspection and the safety measures taken by the event organizer are what to watch.