On the 29th, during the soundproof tunnel fire on the 2nd Gyeongin Expressway in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, where a total of 42 casualties, including 5 deaths, occurred, it was confirmed that the truck driver who first caught fire stated that the fire suddenly broke out under the vehicle while driving.
Gyeonggi Southern Police Agency 2nd Gyeongin Expressway Fire Accident Investigation Headquarters secured a statement from A, the driver of a 5t waste tongs truck, where the first fire occurred the day before, saying, "The air burst and I stopped the car and there was a fire under the passenger side of the vehicle."
Mr. A is said to have said, "I tried to put out the fire with a fire extinguisher, but the fire did not go out, so I evacuated."
At 1:49 p.m. the previous day, the fire started in Mr. A's truck passing through the soundproof tunnel near the Bukuiwang IC of the 2nd Gyeongin Expressway in Gwacheon City, and the flame spread quickly to the soundproof tunnel.
As a result, 5 people were killed and 37 injured.
The fire burned a section of 600m out of 830m of the soundproof tunnel and was completely extinguished at around 4:12 pm, about 2 hours later.
From 11:00 am on the same day, the police will conduct a joint identification with the National Institute of Scientific Investigation and the fire department to investigate whether the vehicle is defective or not.
In addition, the police plan to further investigate truck driver A to see if he was negligent.