South Korea experienced two major industrial accidents on Monday, June 1 according to Korea JoongAng Daily. An explosion at a Hanwha Aerospace factory in Daejeon killed five people and injured two, while a fire at a SK Hynix semiconductor plant in Cheongju released toxic fluorine gas, sending seven employees to hospital for examination.
According to The Daily Star, at around 11 a.m., firefighters received a report of an explosion at the Hanwha Aerospace facility in Daejeon, about 150 kilometers south of Seoul.
The Daejeon Fire Department confirmed that the accident resulted in five deaths and two injuries, and that authorities are investigating the cause.
Hanwha Aerospace is a major South Korean defense manufacturer producing weapons systems, artillery equipment, and aerospace components. The Daejeon plant primarily focuses on advanced weapons technology and aerospace system development. In recent years, amid rising global geopolitical tensions, Hanwha Aerospace has secured arms contracts from multiple countries, including in Europe.
Following the incident, Hanwha Aerospace CEO Son Jae-il held a press conference stating that preliminary findings suggest the explosion occurred while workers were using clean water to wash explosive residue off rocket propulsion manufacturing equipment.
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“We offer our deepest condolences to the victims and their families,” Son said. He pledged that the company would fully cooperate with the investigation and comprehensively review and improve its safety management systems to prevent similar tragedies.
After the news broke, Hanwha Aerospace shares fell 2.8 percent during afternoon trading, while its parent company Hanwha Group dropped 3.4 percent.
This is not the first major incident at the facility. In May 2018, an explosion killed two people on the spot and later led to the deaths of three others due to severe burns. In February 2019, another explosion occurred, killing three people.
Separately, Yonhap News Agency reported, citing fire authorities, that a fire broke out at SK Hynix’s chip plant in Cheongju, releasing toxic fluorine gas.
Reuters reported that firefighters quickly brought the blaze under control, but seven employees were sent to hospital after inhaling gas or being otherwise affected.
SK Hynix later issued a statement saying the fire had been extinguished and relevant authorities had been notified. The Cheongju plant continues normal operations, and the cause of the incident is under investigation.
