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In Cheongju, attention is being paid to whether or not to punish a firefighter who caused a traffic accident that violated a signal during a fire.

According to the police on the 3rd, the fire truck that was dispatched to the fire scene at the intersection of Osong-eup, Heungdeok-gu, crashed into the SUV at 3 pm on the 1st.

At the time, the fire truck was dispatched after receiving a report that there was a fire at KTX Osong Station.

The fire truck hit the SUV, turning straight from the right and then left without keeping a stop sign at the intersection.

In this accident, SUV driver A (25) was injured and taken to hospital.

The two firefighters in the fire truck were not hurt.

Under the Road Traffic Act, ambulances, fire trucks, etc. are classified as'emergency cars', and may be used for traffic or speed violations in emergency situations, and can also be used for traffic.

However, in the event of a traffic accident that injured the other person, the criminal responsibility was required.

In 2016, new provisions were made to reduce or exempt the sentence by taking into account the urgency and inevitability of emergency dispatch.

Based on this, the police checked the radio content of the emergency vehicle in March and prepared internal guidelines that would not be punished as a legitimate action in the business if the urgency was recognized.

The Hungdeok Police Department, which is investigating the accident, is considering whether to punish B, a firefighter who drove a fire engine.

At the time of the accident, the fire of the KTX Osong Station could have resulted in personal injury, so the urgency of the matter will be recognized.

A police official said, "It is difficult to determine, but based on the initial investigation and the circumstances, Mr. B's accident is likely to be recognized as a political act."

The Chungbuk Police Agency did not punish drivers (fire fighting officials) last year because it recognized two fire truck accidents as justifiable.

According to the Chungbuk Provincial Fire Department, the number of traffic accidents (including no casualties) in 119 vehicles is increasing to 39 in 2017, 44 in the following year, and 59 in the past year. 

(Photo = Yonhap News)