Joint Investigation Underway at Hanwha Aerospace After 7 Casualties... Dedicated Investigation Teams Mobilized

Final Identification and Cause Investigation Underway
Safety Inspection Scheduled Due to Collapse Risk
Review of Safety Systems and Regulations
Prosecution and Police Form Dedicated Investigation Teams

A joint inspection of the Hanwha Aerospace Daejeon facility, where an explosion occurred the previous day (June 1), will be conducted on June 2. The company explained that the explosion likely happened while wiping explosives off a tool, but it is expected to take some time to determine the exact cause.

From 10 a.m. on this day, the fire authorities, together with the police, the National Forensic Service, and the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency, will launch a joint inspection.

Kim Younghoon, Minister of Employment and Labor, visited the Hanwha Aerospace Daejeon Plant in Oesam-dong, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, where an explosion accident occurred on the 1st, to inspect the accident site. Photo by Yonhap News

The explosion occurred in a 544-square-meter building on the ground floor, specifically in a cleaning room used for washing explosive substances from rocket propellants. The five people who died and the two who were injured had all been assigned to the cleaning process, wearing fire-resistant suits, since 8 a.m. the previous day. Hanwha Aerospace believes the fire broke out during the process of cleaning solid fuel residue from the rocket propellants.

The fire authorities explained that the blast was so powerful that it was impossible to identify some of the deceased. Final identification is expected to be completed as early as today through DNA analysis by the National Forensic Service.

A safety inspection of the building itself is also expected to take place. Following the explosion, the fire spread and the entire work area was destroyed. Based on the building debris and structure, the fire authorities stated that a safety inspection is necessary to discuss whether to proceed with debris removal.

Efforts to determine the cause of the accident are also being expedited. During this process, the fire safety investigation regulations and other safety systems will be reviewed. The Daejeon facility underwent fire safety inspections both last year and this year, but the building where the explosion occurred was not included in those inspections. The fire safety inspections carried out by the fire authorities took place once in 2023 and once in 2024. During the inspections, issues such as the need to replace firefighting equipment in the main building were identified. A fire department official stated, "Hanwha is required to conduct both operational and comprehensive inspections once a year and report the results, but it appears the location where the explosion occurred was not subject to mandatory reporting under fire safety regulations due to its small size."

The prosecution and police are forming dedicated investigation teams to focus on the case. The Daejeon District Prosecutors’ Office has established a team led by Jeon Youngwoo, chief of the 4th Criminal Division, consisting of three prosecutors and six investigators, totaling ten members. The Daejeon Metropolitan Police Agency will also form a team led by Oh Dongwook, Head of Investigation, centered on detectives from the metropolitan investigation unit, serious crime unit, and forensic science unit.

This facility also experienced fatal explosions in 2018 and 2019, which resulted in five and three deaths, respectively. After the 2018 incident, the Daejeon Regional Employment and Labor Office conducted a special labor inspection of the facility and detected 486 violations, categorizing it as 'lowest grade.'

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.