South Korean rescuers search burned factory after a blaze killed 22, mostly Chinese migrants
Seoul (AP): Rescue workers were combing through the charred ruins of a factory building near South Korea's capital to find any more fire victims Tuesday, a day after a devastating blaze likely triggered by exploding lithium batteries killed 22 people, mostly Chinese migrant workers.
More than 100 people were working at the factory in Hwaseong city, just south of Seoul, when the fire tore through it Monday morning. Security cameras showed smoke engulfing the second-floor worksite of the factory, soon after sparks were detected from a site where lithium batteries were stored, fire officials said.
One victim was pronounced dead at a hospital, and fire workers retrieved 21 bodies from the factory one by one later Monday. Eighteen victims were Chinese, two were South Korean and one was Laotian. The nationality of one of the dead was being verified.
Many Chinese people, including ethnic Koreans, have migrated to South Korea to find jobs since China and South Korea established diplomatic ties in 1992.
Like other migrant labourers from Southeast Asian countries, they often work in factories, construction sites and restaurants, engaging in the so-called “difficult, dangerous and dirty” jobs that are shunned by more affluent South Koreans.
Chinese Ambassador Xing Haiming visited the factory site on Monday night and reportedly expressed condolences to the victims. Police were extracting DNA samples from the dead bodies and their potential relatives to confirm their relations, according to fire officials.
One factory worker remains out of contact but his mobile phone signal was detected at the building on Monday afternoon. Eight were injured, two of them in serious condition.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol also visited the factory site Monday. He expressed condolences to the dead people and ordered officials to put in place measures to effectively deal with battery-related fires, according to Yoon's office.
On Tuesday, more than 50 fire officers, aided by two rescue dogs and other equipment, were mobilized to continue searching the burned factory, local fire official Kim Jin-young told a televised briefing. He said partial remains had been discovered but it wasn't immediately known if they belonged to the missing person.
Kim said a separate team of fire, police and other experts were also set to examine the site later Tuesday to investigate what exactly caused the blaze. Labour officials said the government will separately investigate whether any safety issues were involved in the fire. The factory is owned by a battery manufacturer, Aricell.
Most of the dead workers were daily labourers so they were not likely familiar with the building's internal structure, senior fire officer Jo Seon-ho told reporters Monday.
He said the video of the fire site showed they rushed to an area where there was no exit after failing to put out the blaze with fire extinguishers. He said the victims likely inhaled toxic smoke.
Rechargeable lithium-ion batteries are ubiquitous in consumer goods from laptops to cellphones. They can overheat if damaged, defective or packaged improperly, leading to fires and explosions and making them a hazard for shipment aboard aircraft.
Monday's blaze is one of the deadliest in South Korea in recent years.
In 2020, a fire at a warehouse being built in Icheon City, south of Seoul, killed 38 construction workers. In 2018, 46 people died after a fire ripped through a small hospital with no sprinkler systems in the southern city of Miryang.
In 2008, 40 workers, 12 of them ethnic Koreans with Chinese nationality, died after a fire and accompanying explosions tore through a refrigerated warehouse in Icheon city.
South Korea has struggled for decades to improve safety standards and change widespread attitudes that regard safety as subservient to economic progress and convenience.
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AAP alleges 'deep-rooted' conspiracy to kill Kejriwal, BJP terms it 'drama'
New Delhi, Oct 26: The AAP on Saturday alleged the BJP was conspiring to "kill" its convener Arvind Kejriwal and had become "an enemy of his life". The ruling party warned that the BJP would be responsible if anything happened to the former chief minister.
Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly Vijender Gupta dismissed the AAP's allegations, saying it was yet another "drama" by the AAP to defame the BJP ahead of the assembly polls.
The AAP had on Friday claimed that Kejriwal, a Z-plus protectee, was attacked by "BJP goons" during his 'padyatra' (foot march) in west Delhi's Vikaspuri, a charge trashed by the saffron party.
However, no video of the alleged attack was made available by the party. Police said they had not received any official complaint from the AAP.
Addressing a press conference on Saturday, AAP MP Sanjay Singh alleged police were complicit in the incident.
"Police complicity in the incident clearly shows a deep-rooted conspiracy to kill Kejriwal. The BJP has become an enemy of his life," he said.
There was no immediate response from police to the Rajya Sabha MP's claim.
Singh said that despite Friday's incident, Kejriwal would carry on with the 'padyatra' as scheduled.
AAP leaders including Kejriwal are undertaking 'padyatras' in different assembly segments of the city in the run-up to the Delhi Assembly polls, likely to be held in February 2025.
Asked why the AAP had not filed a complaint regarding the alleged attack on Kejriwal, Singh said police could take cognisance of the incident and launch a probe.
It would not have happened if police were impartial. Police officers did not do anything to stop the "attackers" who belonged to the BJP's youth wing, he claimed, adding the AAP was seeking legal opinion on the matter.
He also accused BJP leaders of supporting the "attackers".
Singh said Kejriwal would "neither stop nor bow down" and continue to fight for the people of Delhi.
If anything happens to Kejriwal, then the BJP would be responsible for it. Even if Kejriwal suffers a scratch, Delhi's people would take revenge on the BJP, he said.
At another press conference, Delhi cabinet minister Saurabh Bharadwaj claimed one of the attackers was the vice president of the BJP's Delhi Yuva Morcha.
"BJP Yuva Morcha functionaries attacked Kejriwal. One of the attackers is the vice president of BJP Yuva Morcha of Delhi and the second is the general secretary," he said.
The two BJP leaders, who were dancing after attacking Kejriwal, had lost the councillor elections, claimed Bharadwaj.
BJP leader Gupta rubbished the AAP's claims.
"Despite blaming the BJP, no complaint has been filed by the AAP over the alleged attack on Kejriwal, which shows that the party is trying to play the victim card and gain sympathy by trying to defame the BJP before the assembly polls," he said.
The BJP leader said the AAP is worried about the "waning public support" and is attempting to confuse people through such tactics.
The area where Kejriwal was allegedly attacked is not an AAP stronghold and hence, the party "concocted" the story to gain sympathy, Gupta alleged.
