POSCO Pohang Plant Explosion and Fire Under Police Investigation

The police have launched an investigation to determine the cause of the explosion and fire at POSCO’s Pohang Steelworks.

On the 11th, the Pohang Nam-gu Police Station in Gyeongsangbuk-do announced plans to summon POSCO officials to investigate the circumstances of the incident and analyze the cause.

Initially, the police and fire authorities, in collaboration with the National Forensic Service (NFS), had planned to conduct an on-site inspection of the accident on the 11th. However, due to a schedule adjustment by the NFS, the joint site inspection will take place on the 12th.

Given that Pohang Steelworks is a nationally critical facility, the inspection will be conducted privately.

Currently, the police and fire authorities are focusing on the possibility that the explosion occurred because the "blast pipe," an oxygen injection device located beneath the melting furnace in the 3rd FINEX plant, did not function properly. However, the exact cause of the blast pipe’s malfunction has yet to be determined.

Pohang Steelworks experienced a similar incident in 2013, when a fire broke out due to a crack in the blast pipe of the 1st FINEX plant. As such, the police plan to prioritize investigating the operational status of the blast pipe, potential equipment defects, and possible negligence by workers in this incident.

The accident occurred at around 4:20 a.m. on the 10th in the 3rd FINEX plant at Pohang Steelworks. The explosion and ensuing fire took approximately five hours to extinguish.

Among the eight workers present in the plant, one suffered second-degree burns and is receiving medical treatment.

A police official stated, “A thorough on-site inspection and worker investigation are necessary to identify the exact cause of the accident, which may take some time to conclude.”


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POSCO Pohang Plant Explosion and Fire Under Police Investigation