An explosion at Hanwha Aerospace's Daejeon facility on June 1 resulted in the deaths of five workers. CEO Son Jae-il expressed his condolences to the victims' families and the public during a press briefing, promising to investigate the cause of the accident and prevent future occurrences.
During two joint briefings held that afternoon, Son stated, "We failed to protect the lives of our workers in a place that should be safe," and added, "As the representative, I feel a heavy sense of responsibility," bowing his head in remorse.
The incident reportedly occurred in a cleaning area for rocket propellants at the Daejeon facility. Among the deceased, two were contract workers in their 20s, while the other three were full-time employees aged 30 and 50. It remains unclear if they were working in the same area at the time of the explosion.
Gajae Woong, the head of the Daejeon facility, commented at the fire scene, "We believed the process was not highly dangerous, so we are surprised by this unexpected accident." He further explained, "Since water is used in the cleaning process, we are investigating the potential for a chemical reaction."
The company stated it is fully committed to managing the aftermath of the incident and supporting the victims' families. Gajae Woong noted, "We are in continuous contact with the families to discuss support measures."
The Hanwha Aerospace labor union has called for a thorough investigation into the incident. Heo Rok, the union's chairman, expressed his sorrow, stating, "Despite previous similar accidents in 2018 and 2019 that claimed many workers' lives, another tragedy has occurred before we could even forget the last one."
He further asserted, "The recurrence of similar accidents in the same location is something that could have been foreseen. This incident is a result of neglecting and tolerating unsafe conditions."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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