“I thought I had to live on even for the sake of my fallen colleagues.”
This is the resolve of Lee Sung-chon (59), deputy commander of the Seoul 119 Special Rescue Unit, who keeps six fellow firefighters lost in the March 4, 2001, multi-family housing fire in Hongje-dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, deeply embedded in his heart. The Hongje-dong disaster is recorded as the accident resulting in the highest number of firefighter fatalities from a single domestic fire. At the time, the harsh reality of entering the fire suppression site wearing waterproof suits instead of fire-resistant gear, coupled with illegal parking that hindered vehicle access, came to light, leading to massive overhauls in equipment, laws, and systems. It was also a turning point in Deputy Commander Lee’s life. We met him on October 29 ahead of “Firefighters’ Day” on November 9.
Deputy Commander Lee served as a Special Forces non-commissioned officer for nearly eight years before successfully passing the exam on his third attempt to become a firefighter in 1996. He said, “I desperately wanted to become a firefighter who solves big and small difficulties right next to citizens.” Early in his appointment, he was dispatched after receiving a report that an elderly person had dropped their dentures into a drain. He connected a PVC pipe to a vacuum cleaner to retrieve them. He still cannot forget the crumpled 1,000-won bill that the elderly man’s wife handed him from her traditional Korean pocket while saying, “Thank you.”
Fire scenes are always fraught with danger. In 1998, Deputy Commander Lee suffered severe burns covering 35% of his entire body due to a sudden backdraft at a fire site in Hong&un-dong, Seoul. He recalls that fellow firefighters Jang Seok-chan and Park Jun-woo visited his hospital room and faithfully cared for him, even handling his bodily wastes. Tragically, however, these two colleagues were buried and killed during the Hongje-dong disaster. Deputy Commander Lee, who was off duty at the time, rushed to the scene upon receiving the call and entered the collapsed building debris. He recalled, “With warmth still lingering in their bodies, I thought they might survive, but ultimately heard the tragic news.” He added, “Had they survived, they were the kind of people who would have saved more lives and practiced neighborly love.” Indeed, they had been sharing a portion of their monthly salaries to support volunteer work at child care facilities.
That is why he established the volunteer group “Sarangnanum” (Sharing Love) less than a month after the tragedy. The volunteer work, which began at a childcare facility, expanded to include unauthorized facilities for disabled care. In recognition of these contributions, Deputy Commander Lee received a Presidential Citation for National Recommendations in 2019. To this day, he prepares 1,000 kilograms of rice and kimchi every year to deliver to his “neighbors.” He also narrowly escaped death in 2013 when he fell from a fire site in Magok-dong, Seoul, only to be caught on a 12th-floor scaffolding. He broke six ribs. He describes his life as an unexpected bonus.
Deputy Commander Lee has tattooed the image of a firefighter and the phrase “First In, Last Out” over his severe burn scars. Ahead of his mandatory retirement at the end of next year, one of his main duties is to rescue firefighters isolated at fire scenes. He also teaches juniors how to escape isolation situations. This is to ensure that heartbreaking news of firefighters’ deaths is no longer reported. He stated, “My thought is to ensure my juniors do not suffer the same pain I did.” Even during the Guryong Village fire in Gangnam last month, he was dispatched just in case.
However, even after 25 years, he still cannot visit the Hongje-dong accident site. He also finds it hard to step foot on the “Firefighters’ Hero Road” created two years ago. Instead, he maintains ties with the bereaved families of his fallen colleagues by exchanging greetings during major holidays and attending family events. He also visits the memorial monument and tower inscribed with the “Six Fire Heroes” inside the Seoul Fire Administration Town.
Regarding Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae’s recent controversial “fiscal straw” remark concerning firefighter budgets, Deputy Commander Lee stated, “While it might have been said in the process of managing Gyeonggi Province’s finances, I think the expression was wrong.” He added, “Firefighters who risk their lives might think, ‘Do we have to work even while enduring such words?’ But that is their part, and we should not be swayed by such remarks and simply keep doing what we usually do.”
