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Factory fire in Gwangju fully extinguished after four hours, no injuries reported

Published: 31 Mar. 2026, 14:32

A fire breaks out a distribution factory in Gwangju, Gyeonggi, on March 30. [GYEONGGI-DO FIRE SERVICES]

A fire that broke out at a distribution factory in Gwangju, Gyeonggi, on Monday evening was fully extinguished around four hours later, at 12:34 a.m. on Tuesday.

The fire destroyed five factory buildings along with clothing, construction materials and disposable goods stored inside. Flames spread to a nearby glass factory, partially damaging its building and equipment. Two people on site evacuated on their own, and no injuries were reported.

At around 8:31 p.m., fire authorities issued a Level 1 response, which by definition mobilizes 31 to 50 pieces of equipment, and deployed around 30 vehicles, including pump trucks, along with about 90 personnel to contain the fire.

The main flames were brought under control at approximately 10:38 p.m., about two hours and 30 minutes after the initial report. The response level was lifted nine minutes later.

As large amounts of smoke were generated, the Gwangju city government sent out disaster alert text messages to the residents at around 8:51 p.m., urging nearby residents to take precautions.

The factory where the fire occurred is a single-story reinforced concrete structure measuring about 900 square meters (9,690 square feet) and comprising five buildings.

Police and fire authorities plan to investigate the full extent of the damage and the cause of the fire.

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 HYEON YE-SEUL [[email protected]]