Fire Breaks Out at Templestay Building in Samhwasa Temple, Donghae, Gangwon

39 Personnel and 13 Pieces of Equipment Deployed for Fire Suppression Operations

A fire broke out at Samhwasa Temple in Donghae, Gangwon Province, and firefighting authorities are working to extinguish it.

According to Donghae Fire Station in Gangwon Province, the fire started at Samhwasa Temple in Samhwa-dong, Donghae City at around 3:41 p.m. on August 1.

Donghae Fire Station conducted a training for forest fire response in April last year around the traditional temple Samhwasa in Samhwa-dong, Donghae City, Gangwon Province. Photo by Yonhap News

Fire authorities have deployed 39 personnel and 13 pieces of equipment to carry out the firefighting operation.

The fire is believed to have started in the "Hyangjeokdang" building, which is used for temple stay programs. As of now, there appears to be little risk of the fire spreading to other buildings and facilities within the temple complex, such as the Daeungjeon Hall.

At the time of the fire, all six people—including temple stay participants—evacuated safely, and as of now, there are no reports of casualties.

Samhwasa is a temple affiliated with Woljeongsa, the headquarters of the 4th District of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism.

Authorities plan to investigate the exact cause of the fire and assess the extent of the damage once the fire has been fully extinguished.

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