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Good Samaritan who put out fire asked to pay for extinguisher

Published: 22 Apr. 2025, 16:00 Updated: 22 Apr. 2025, 16:02

Stock photo of a fire extinguisher [GETTY IMAGES]

A person who did a good deed by putting out a fire at an arcade was allegedly asked by the owner of the fire extinguisher to pay for using it.

Baek Kyung, a firefighter and writer who shares anecdotes under his pen name on the social media platform X, posted the story on Saturday. He recounted a recent phone call made to the fire station.

The caller was a passerby who had put out a small fire in front of a commercial building, according to the post.

The fire had started near a utility pole, with a discarded cigarette butt igniting a pile of trash. Acting quickly, the person grabbed a fire extinguisher in a restaurant on the ground floor of the building and managed to put out the flames before fire trucks even arrived.

But instead of gratitude, the restaurant owner allegedly demanded payment for the fire extinguisher.

"Do I really have to pay for it?" the bystander asked on the phone. Baek, surprised by the situation, replied, "This is a first for me, too."

When the pedestrian asked where to buy a replacement, Baek simply told him to search "ABC fire extinguisher" online.

"It was a windy day and the fire could easily have spread to the building," Baek wrote in the post. "But the restaurant owner seemed more upset about the used extinguisher than relieved the fire was put out."

"Instead of thanks, all this good Samaritan got was a receipt," Baek wrote, expressing regret over the incident. "The world has lost another righteous person."

The post quickly gained attention online, with netizens expressing outrage. Comments included: “This is like saving a drowning person only to be asked to hand over your belongings,” “A fire extinguisher doesn’t even cost that much,” and “Businesses in crowded areas should be legally required to keep extinguishers accessible to anyone during emergencies.”

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.

BY HYEON YE-SEUL [[email protected]]