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Firefighters extinguish main blaze at tire factory after 32 hours

Published: 18 May. 2025, 16:11

YIM SEUNG-HYE
[email protected]

Black smoke appears above Kumho Tire Factory in Gwangju on the morning of May 18 as fire authorities continue to work to extinguish the fire that broke out the previous morning. [YONHAP]

The main blaze at Kumho Tire’s Gwangju plant was brought under control nearly 32 hours after it broke out, fire authorities said Sunday.

Officials announced that major firefighting efforts concluded at 2:50 p.m. Sunday. A large fire broke out in the morning a day earlier at Kumho Tire's Gwangju plant in downtown Gwangju. Authorities said the fire is about 90 to 95 percent contained and estimated that full extinguishment would be completed within 90 minutes of the main blaze coming under control.

In response, the emergency alert level was downgraded to Level 1, which mobilizes all personnel from the local fire station. The alert had previously been raised to a national level due to the scale of the incident.

The blaze left one employee and two firefighters injured, forced the evacuation of around 400 workers, and brought tire production at the facility to a complete halt.

The fire originated in Plant 2, the western section of the Gwangju complex, which houses facilities for preheating raw rubber in an industrial oven during the rubber mixing process. Officials believe the fire began when an unidentified spark ignited in the oven system.

An initial assessment suggests that 50 to 60 percent of Plant 2 was destroyed.

Kumho Tire has suspended all operations at the Gwangju site. The fire also forced the evacuation of 132 residents from 71 households in four nearby apartment complexes. They are currently staying at a temporary shelter set up at Gwangju Women’s University gymnasium.

BY YIM SEUNG-HYE [[email protected]]