SEOUL, October 28 (AJP) -It took nearly 13 hours to fully extinguish a fire that swept through Guryong Village, a sprawling shantytown tucked away in the affluent Gangnam district of southern Seoul, leaving more than 100 residents displaced and one person injured.
Fire authorities declared the blaze fully extinguished at 4:39 a.m. Wednesday, 12 hours and 49 minutes after it broke out in a makeshift structure in District 2 of the village at around 3:50 p.m. Tuesday.
Firefighters brought the main blaze under control at 2:21 a.m. before spending another two hours clearing remaining flames and embers. The fire had also spread to parts of nearby Mount Guryong.
A woman in her 30s suffered minor injuries to her leg. No other casualties were reported.
Driven by strong winds, the fire spread from District 2 to Districts 1, 3 and 7, forcing firefighters to battle the flames through the night.
Authorities deployed 232 personnel, six helicopters and 110 pieces of firefighting equipment. Their efforts were hampered by strong winds, limited water supplies and poor visibility after nightfall.
Fire authorities initially issued a Level 1 emergency response at 3:59 p.m. Tuesday before raising it to Level 2 at 4:29 p.m. as the flames spread. The alert was lowered to Level 1 at 10:05 p.m. after firefighters determined that the blaze was no longer expanding.
Thick smoke was visible as far away as Dobong in northern Seoul and Anyang in neighboring Gyeonggi Province. Nearby residents reported hearing several loud blasts believed to have come from exploding gas cylinders.
Guryong Village, often described as Seoul's last remaining shantytown, emerged during the rapid development of Gangnam in the 1970s and 1980s, when families displaced by urban redevelopment settled on the hillside.
The sprawling settlement covers an area roughly equivalent to 40 soccer fields and is divided into eight districts.
Its tightly packed makeshift homes, built from highly flammable materials including insulation cotton, plastic sheeting and plywood, make the village particularly vulnerable to fires. Narrow passageways restrict access for fire engines, while tangled electrical wiring and liquefied petroleum gas cylinders add to the danger.
The village has suffered repeated fires. On January 16 this year, a blaze that started in District 4 spread to Districts 5 and 6, forcing 258 residents to evacuate.
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