"I’ll Crawl, Just Save the Commander": DMZ Landmine Explosion Footage Shown Privately to Lawmakers

Footage Shown at Full Session of National Defense Committee on September 29


Fact-Finding Likely to Be Difficult as Explosion Was Not Captured

A video capturing the process of soldiers evacuating the site after a landmine explosion incident in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on the western front was shown privately to the National Assembly’s National Defense Committee.

On the 30th, a landmine warning sign was installed in the civilian control line area of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on the western front in Yeoncheon-gun, Gyeonggi-do. Photo by Yonhap News

Byungju Kim, a member of the Democratic Party, shared footage that he viewed during the full session of the National Defense Committee on September 29, through the Democratic Party’s YouTube channel “Democratic Party TV” the previous day.

The video reportedly shows soldiers entering through a gate on August 21 to clear a new search route and conducting landmine detection, and then, after the accident, supporting each other as they make their way approximately 200 meters to a safe zone.

Assemblyman Kim explained that the soldiers made a makeshift stretcher out of wood and military uniforms to carry their battalion commander, who was unable to walk. In particular, a sergeant who was seriously injured in the explosion reportedly refused assistance from his comrades because there were too few people to carry the battalion commander, saying, “I’ll crawl. Instead, make sure the battalion commander gets out.”

Kim commented, “The sergeant tried to crawl up the hill despite his severe leg injuries. They were helping him along, and it was a truly harrowing scene.”

He continued, “I thought I was the only one tearing up at the scene where they showed such camaraderie even under those circumstances, but I saw members of the People Power Party in front of me were also moved to tears.”

On the same day, Jin Sungjoon, chair of the National Assembly’s National Defense Committee, also described the escape process of the wounded soldiers and the support of their comrades during an interview on CBS Radio’s “Park Sungtae’s News Show.”

As the soldiers evacuated the wounded, they continued to check for additional landmines in case of further explosions. Chairman Jin explained, “They entered and exited while detecting mines, and the landmine explosion occurred as they were coming out. Although they exited along the route that was already detected, since the situation was uncertain, they meticulously checked for mines with probe rods to ensure a safe evacuation.”

He added, “You could really feel the deep sense of camaraderie in the soldiers’ devotion and in the way they held onto their injured comrades and escaped together.”

At the time, 18 soldiers and two body cameras were deployed to the site, but only one camera functioned properly. The footage played at the committee was recorded on that device.

However, the moment of the explosion itself was not captured in the video, leading to criticism regarding the value of the footage for fact-finding purposes.

People Power Party lawmaker Hangiho posted on Facebook, “It was an emotionally charged edit, showing the struggle of wounded soldiers and their comrades trying to carry them to safety during the search. As evidence of the landmine explosion, however, it was completely useless.”

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