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Firefighter's account of near-death experience raises awareness for much needed reform

Posted by Pakman31 pts Saturday, November 8, 2014

On November 8, a report about�a firefighter's touching letter that was read during a government audit back in October has been gaining a lot of attention. In the letter, a firefighter shared a story about a time when he had to risk his life, adding to a heated discussion regarding whether or not to allocate more funds to the firefighting department.

The firefighter, who wished to remain anonymous, works at the Special Rescue Team. Back in September 2012, a hydrofluoric acid spill occurred in the city of Gumi at the Gumi National Industrial Complex. As fluoride is a toxic element, the situation was very dangerous not only for those in the area, but for the firefighters entering the scene.

The firefighter admitted, "Back then when I went in, my knowledge of going into a chemical accident as a firefighter was limited." Yet to make things worse for him and his coworkers, they had to enter the area without being properly equipped and wearing outdated uniforms. He noted that when he opened the box containing his uniform, he noticed that the rubber had been folded in there for so long that they were stuck together. He looked at his uniform wondering if it really would be able to protect him.

Thinking that there was a chance that the group could die on duty, the firefighter told the maknae (youngest) of the group, "You stay here." When the maknae replied, "Even if I die, let's die together," the firefighter was moved to tears. He then went on to write in the letter, "Thinking that if things don't go well, that it would appear in the news five minutes later as a subtitle, the faces of my family and friends passed by me like a slideshow."

In the end, the leak had reached a radius of up to 1 km (approx. 3,281 ft), damaging homes and destroying crops. 18 people were injured, and the Ministry of Health and Welfare revealed that of the 1,842 people medically examined after the incident, 416 were firefighters.

The firefighter who wrote the letter and his coworkers, however, had survived, and he wrote that they hugged each other out of relief afterwards. He then asked the government to improve conditions for firefighters who risk their lives to save others. Although his letter is 2-years-old, it was read again at the audit as firefighters continue to experience hazardous incidents such as this one to this day.

Netizens have commented with their sympathy, saying, "Firefighters, today I also sincerely thank you," "Let's actually use our tax money on thing like this," and, "If we have a pension reform we need to guarantee the firefighters and policemen their pensions."�

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