7 out of 10 Fires in Narrow Spaces Between Commercial Buildings in Gyeonggi Province Caused by Cigarette Butts

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Park Noh-hun] Over the past five years, approximately 7 out of every 10 fires occurring in narrow spaces between commercial buildings have been caused by cigarette butts.

According to an analysis by the Gyeonggi Province Fire Department on the 6th regarding recent 5-year fire statistics in narrow spaces between commercial buildings, a total of 114 fires occurred in hallways, outdoor unit installation areas, separate collection spaces, and rest areas between commercial buildings from 2016 through August of this year. This amounts to an average of 23 fires occurring annually.

During this period, 1 person died, 1 person was injured, and property damage totaled 2.47 billion won.

By cause of fire, negligence accounted for 82.5% of the total, with 94 cases being the most common. This was followed by electrical factors (12 cases), unknown causes (5 cases), mechanical factors (2 cases), and suspected arson (1 case).

Among negligence cases, cigarette butts were overwhelmingly the leading cause with 88 cases. This represents 77.1% of all fires in narrow spaces between commercial buildings. By time of day, fires occurring between 12 p.m. and 12 a.m. accounted for 85 cases, representing 74.6% of the total, occurring most frequently during afternoon through nighttime hours when foot traffic in commercial areas is highest.

An official from the Gyeonggi Province Fire Department stated, "We conducted an analysis of fire incidents in narrow spaces, which are fire risk factors in commercial buildings, in order to use it as basic data for commercial district fire prevention measures," and added, "We will do our utmost to prevent fires in densely populated areas such as commercial establishments through thorough analysis of fire causes."

Meanwhile, Gyeonggi Province has a total of 259,950 commercial buildings. This accounts for 20.1% of the nation's 1,294,368 commercial buildings. From 2016 through August of this year, 904 fires occurred in commercial establishments in the province, resulting in 12 deaths, 78 injuries, and property damage of 7.2 billion won.