Overview

• Two residents—a woman in her 60s and her son in his 20s—were killed and 13 others injured when the blaze broke out on the 14th floor of a 20-story Mapo District complex early Aug. 17.
• Fire crews issued a Level 1 emergency response, deploying 252 personnel and 79 vehicles to bring the fire under control in about two hours and evacuate 89 occupants.
• Authorities suspect a lithium-ion battery charging failure triggered a thermal runaway explosion in the originating unit and have begun a joint forensic investigation.
• The 14th floor lacked a sprinkler system under pre-2004 building codes, and data from a lawmaker show that 65% of apartment towers built before that year remain without mandatory sprinklers on mid-level floors.
• Eyewitnesses reported a loud bang, rapid smoke spread and digital door lock failures that forced some residents to shelter in bathrooms before firefighters rescued them.