Authorities find 473 violations at Hanwha's deadly Daejeon plant

Korea's Labor Ministry found hundreds of legal violations at Hanwha Aerospace's Daejeon factory, the site of a June explosion that killed five workers and injured two others.

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A Hanwha Aerospace facility in Daejeon is seen heavily damaged on June 1 following an explosion and fire that killed five people.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor said Thursday it has uncovered a total of 473 legal violations at Hanwha Aerospace's factory in the central city of Daejeon, where an explosion in June killed five people and left two others injured.

The Labor Ministry made the announcement after conducting a special inspection of the defense company's Daejeon factory following the fatal explosion.

Of the 473 violations, 189 resulted in legal action, while administrative fines totaling about 500 million won ($367,000) were imposed for the remaining 284, the ministry said. The 189 cases subject to legal action are 184 breaches of safety and health regulations and five violations involving failures to implement protective measures for subcontracted workers.

The explosion occurred on June 1 at the Daejeon plant's Building 56, a facility used to clean tools contaminated with rocket propellant. The plant has a history of similar accidents, with five fatalities reported in 2018 and three in 2019.


Yonhap