‘Powerless from the guilt': Despite rescuers’ best efforts, Ulsan boiler collapse victim dies
Published: 09 Nov. 2025, 18:31
Updated: 10 Nov. 2025, 16:05
![The body of a victim of the Ulsan Thermal Power Plant collapse is carried into an ambulance on Nov. 9. [NEWS1]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/11/10/22835536-1891-47a6-b29e-23f4df30b560.jpg)
The body of a victim of the Ulsan Thermal Power Plant collapse is carried into an ambulance on Nov. 9. [NEWS1]
ULSAN — “My heart felt like it was breaking when we had to leave him. [He] had been holding on for more than 13 hours, and we couldn't save him,” said Jung Hyeong-ho, a member of the Busan 119 special response unit, who joined the rescue operation at the Ulsan Thermal Power Plant shortly after 6:30 p.m. on Thursday.
Jung, along with his team, worked through the night to free a 44-year-old worker surnamed Kim who was pinned by rubble inside the ruined structure. The boiler tower had collapsed that afternoon, burying seven workers under steel and concrete.
Jung and other rescue teams from Busan, Daegu and North Gyeongsang arrived to find what looked like, in his words, “a bomb site.” The 60-meter-tall (196-feet-tall) structure had crumpled inward, its steel beams tangled like wire. Given the extent of the devastation, even professionals had difficulty knowing where to begin their search.
That hesitation, however, vanished once they learned a survivor was inside.
“When I first entered the collapsed tower, I was honestly afraid that more debris would fall [on us] or that the two nearby towers, Units 4 and 6, might not be stable,” Jung told the JoongAng Ilbo in a phone interview on Saturday. “But the moment I saw the survivor’s face, all that fear disappeared. From then on, all I could think about was saving the survivor, and I forgot about [the danger] completely.”
The rescue was challenging. The survivor was only a few meters away, but thick layers of H-beams and rebar blocked the way. Rescuers paved a path through the metal with power tools and hydraulic presses. Hours later, they managed to open a narrow passage.
![Firefighters recover the bodies of those trapped beneath rubble at the Ulsan Thermal Power Plant in Ulsan on Nov. 9. [NEWS1]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/11/10/35114555-df52-445b-b6df-6d571da103e0.jpg)
Firefighters recover the bodies of those trapped beneath rubble at the Ulsan Thermal Power Plant in Ulsan on Nov. 9. [NEWS1]
The team could do nothing more because the survivor's arm and upper body were crushed beyond reach. They had heavy equipment on site, but they were unable to use any; the tools could produce vibrations that would cause the nearby towers to collapse further. Instead, rescuers worked by hand, administering painkillers and wrapping the survivor in blankets to keep him warm while encouraging him to hold on.
Jung recalled the trapped worker saying, “It hurts. I can't breathe.”
Jung added, “All we could do was tell him to stay strong.”
At 4:53 a.m., the survivor slipped into unconsciousness. Despite CPR efforts, he was pronounced dead.
After the boiler tower collapse at the Ulsan Thermal Power Plant, officials inside the facility discuss preblasting work for Boiler Units 4 and 6 on Nov. 9
“I have to return to the scene tomorrow, but I feel depressed and powerless from the guilt of not saving him,” Jung said. “But there are still people missing, and their families are waiting. We have to keep believing in that one percent chance of a miracle.”
The collapse initially left nine workers trapped or injured. As of Sunday, two were rescued and survived, while five were confirmed or presumed dead. Two remain missing. Rescue teams are using drones, thermal cameras, sound detectors, endoscopic cameras and search-and-rescue dogs to locate them.
Due to the risk of further collapse, rescuers have yet to re-enter the tower. Preblasting work began on Saturday around Units No. 4 and No. 6 to make the area safe for search operations.
“It’s agonizing to stand by and watch while people are still trapped inside,” said Lee Hak-sul, a team leader with the Busan 119 special response unit. “For us, the golden [rescue] period doesn’t end until every last person is found alive.”
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY WE SUNG-WOOK, LEE EUN-JI [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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