2 killed, 31 others injured in Gwangju motel fire
Firefighters gather in front of a motel in Gwangju, Sunday, after putting out a fire that killed one person and injured 28 others. Yonhap
By Kim Jae-heun
Two people were killed and 31 injured in a fire at a motel in Gwangju, Sunday, after one of the guests set fire to his room.
The police detained the arson suspect, surnamed Kim, 39, and are questioning him.
The fire broke out at 5:45 a.m. when most of the guests were asleep.
Over 200 firefighters and rescue workers came with 20 fire trucks to put out the blaze in about 30 minutes.
When the rescue team entered the five-story building to search for victims, the smoke had already filled the top three floors.
Among some 50 guests, about 20 escaped but the rest were trapped on the fourth and fifth floors and later rescued by firefighters. They were immediately transported to eight hospitals nearby, but two of them died and 13 of the remaining 31 are in critical condition with respiratory difficulty and severe burns. Many inhaled toxic gas from the blaze before and during the rescue, local firefighters said.
One woman jumped from a window on the fourth floor but she managed to survive with only minor injuries as she landed on a tent that absorbed the shock.
A firefighter looks around the inside of a motel in Gwangju, Sunday, while investigating the cause of a fire that killed two and injured 31. A guest allegedly started the fire to commit suicide in his room but the fire grew to burn the whole five-story building. / Yonhap
The police suspect the fire could be arson, considering a specific room on the third floor was entirely burnt. So they questioned the room guest, Kim, at the hospital where he was receiving treatment for a minor injury, and he admitted to it.
According to a motel worker, Kim booked the room alone at 12:11 a.m. that morning, saying he would stay for about three days.
He told the police that he set fire to a pillow with his lighter and even put tissues on it to make it burn well. He allegedly left the room covering his body with blankets, but returned shortly after to retrieve his belongings. When he opened the door, the flames began to rise, he told the police.
He was the first to escape from the fire and was transferred to a hospital, according to CCTV recording.
Kim, a day laborer, said he had attempted to commit suicide in the room, but did not say in detail why he escaped.
The police said they would question him further and seek an arrest warrant after he finishes receiving treatment.
Some 70 investigators have been put into the scene to figure out the exact cause of the blaze.
The fire authority said the emergency bell operated fine when the fire broke out but the building lacked sprinklers. It is not obligatory for the motel, with five stories aboveground and one story underground, to install sprinklers according to the relevant law.