YEOSU, South Korea– An explosion rocked a petrochemical factory in the southern city of Yeosu on Friday, leaving four workers dead and four others injured, police said.
The explosion occurred at 9:26 a.m. at the Yeochun NCC Co. factory in Yeosu, about 320 km south of Seoul, and eight people were believed to be at the scene at the time.
Of them, four died and four were taken to a hospital with injuries. Three of the deceased workers were employees of a subcontractor of Yeochun NCC.
Police and firefighters believe the explosion occurred during a testing of the factory’s heat exchange system and are investigating the exact cause of the blast.
Following the accident, police launched an investigation on suspicions of possible professional negligence in connection with the explosion. Officials carried out a forensic analysis at the site of the accident in the afternoon and later plan to conduct autopsies of the deceased workers.
The labor ministry also dispatched inspectors to probe whether there were any violations of the new industrial disaster prevention law put in effect since late January. Friday’s accident was the third industrial disaster subject to a probe in connection with potential criminal charges since the law’s enforcement.
Founded in 1999 in a merger between Hanwha Solutions Co. and DL Chemical NCC Co., Yeochun NCC is considered one of Asia’s leading producers of ethylene products. An explosion at the same factory in 2001 left one worker dead.
Source: Yonhap News Agency