Fire Extinguished at USFK Warehouse in Busan; No Casualties Reported

BUSAN: A fire that erupted at a U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) warehouse in Busan was successfully extinguished without any reported casualties, officials confirmed. The blaze, which began on Thursday evening, was brought under control after nearly 19 hours of firefighting efforts. According to Yonhap News Agency, the Busan Metropolitan City Fire Disaster Headquarters declared the fire fully extinguished at 1:34 p.m. on Friday. The initial outbreak occurred at 6:31 p.m. on Thursday at the USFK facility located 320 kilometers southeast of Seoul. The major flames were contained by early Friday morning, allowing the fire response system to be lifted at 7:34 a.m. A substantial firefighting operation was conducted, involving over 160 personnel and 51 pieces of equipment. The fire reportedly originated at a cold storage facility within the warehouse, which was under construction at the time. An official from the U.S. Army Garrison Daegu stated that the warehouse was unoccupied due to ongoing renovations, and no hazardo us material leaks have been reported. The U.S. Army indicated that it does not plan to investigate South Korean workers, as they were not present when the incident occurred. Under the Status of Forces Agreement between the United States and South Korea, the U.S. Army retains jurisdiction over investigations at its military sites. The USFK, in coordination with local firefighting authorities, intends to investigate the cause of the fire. However, findings from the investigation will not be disclosed to the public due to existing treaty obligations. The warehouse, characterized by its sandwich panel structures and the presence of construction and combustible materials, posed significant challenges to firefighting efforts. It served as a distribution hub for USFK equipment arriving at the Busan port for distribution to units across South Korea.