Newscasts - Korean battery plant CEO apologizes after deadly fire

S Connect Co

25/06/2024 11:12

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Source: 'Reuters - General news videos'

Description: The CEO of a South Korean lithium battery manufacturer apologized
on Tuesday (June 25) following a massive factory fire that killed 23 workers,
as a labor ministry official told Reuters authorities are investigating the
company's compliance with safety regulations, including the training of
foreign contract workers. Diane To reports.
Short Link: https://refini.tv/4cxAv1K

Video Transcript:

The chief executive of a South Korean battery maker apologized on Tuesday over
a massive factory fire the day before as firefighters found the body of the
last missing worker, raising the death toll to 23.


We apologize for the loss of many lives in the fire accident at the Aricell
plant on June 24.


Aricell CEO Park Soon-kwan was speaking to reporters at the factory site in
Hwaseong, an industrial cluster southwest of the capital Seoul. He promised
the company would take on “a firm responsibility” for the tragedy
and cooperate with the authorities’ investigations. While Aricell’s
director insisted the company had fully complied with safety procedures and
training, including with simulated fire conditions. A labor ministry official
told Reuters authorities were looking into Aricell's compliance and whether it
gave adequate safety training for temporary foreign workers. Some of the 103
workers at the factory, including a number of those killed in Monday's fire,
were contract staff sent by a manpower company. At least 17 of the victims
were Chinese nationals, and one, Laotian. Some women believed to be family
members of the deceased, were seen sobbing for their loved ones outside the
factory on Tuesday. Between their cries, one of them said in Korean, “How
scared you must have been.” Firefighters with search dogs comb the gutted
structure before locating the missing 23rd victim. Forensics, police and labor
ministry officials were also there as part of a joint investigation. One
official told reporters, nine agencies were working together to figure out the
exact location and cause of the fire. It's the latest industrial accident in a
country where dozens of manufacturing workers lose their lives on the job each
year, despite repeated calls to improve workplace safety. The South Korean
government has now ordered urgent safety inspections at high-risk industrial
sites