Korean Job Discussion Forums

[polonius]

So a couple weeks ago the Hagwon I work for caught fire. The fire spread very fast, and in a matter of minutes the floor was engulfed in flames. The fire was caused by one of those heater fans (no not the dreaded fan death fans) and because of a couple reasons many children's and teachers' lives were saved.

Last summer we had a fire escape installed on our building, as per new fire regulations implemented. At first I thought it was silly to make the escape accessible only from the 9th (top) floor to the 5th. We own the 5th and 6th, 8th and 9th floors, and had asked if the other floors wanted to take part in the installation. However, because it is not mandatory for the 4th floor and below to install one, they opted not to. So, this saved lives.

More importantly were the actions of some of the foreign staff. When I had heard the fire had broken loose, I ran up to the 8th floor where it was happening. It was impossible for me to move anywhere, as the fire had fully erupted, and there was no way through the doors. I started going at the fire with an extinguisher, mainly so that I could see if there was anyone in the immediate area. After seeing that my attempts were fruitless, I went to another floor so that I could access the fire escape, and go up to the burning floor. At this point I saw the other foreign manager coming down the escape which signaled that all the students and staff had been removed from the floor. Thanks to his quick thinking and actions, he saved many children's lives. He had helped all the students and staff make it out safely onto the fire escape even though he was breathing in thick black smoke.

I am honored that he is my colleague and friend, and wanted to share with you the pride that I have in him. His actions shouldn't be forgotten.

[thatwhitegirl]

Wow! That must have been scary!
How did the electric fan start the fire? Was it found out?

Great to hear about a real hero.

[polonius]

They heating fan was being used in our old sound studio. Some people were having a meeting there, and when they pulled the plug on the fan, a spark flew and hit the wall, which was covered in sound proofing material, which lit up in seconds. As a result, the heater fans are banished from our school.

And yes, it was the most frightening thing I have ever seen. You know how you see in movies, where fires are spreading up the walls and burning the ceiling like in Backdraft, well, thats what I saw.

[cruisemonkey]

I'm glad no death resulted... the windows or a door must have been open.

[Hanson]

Wow. Good on you and your colleague. Well done.

Perhaps this deserves a little press coverage - could show the other side of the coin regarding foreigners.

[marlow]

[betty74]

Wow, that is really something. Thankfully everyone got out. My hagwon has no fire escape and after 5:00 PM there is no access off our floor except the elevator because the companies below us lock the stairwell doors and we have to cross over on the floor below us to get to the stairs.
It scares me to think if there was ever a fire we would all be trapped. The job isn't bad, but obviously our owner, who is never there, doesn't have a lot of regard for our safety. Good for you and your coworker OP. You were very brave.

[Captain Corea]

[Roch]

Thanks for the post!

R

[kimchi_pizza]

[Thunndarr]

Was this hagwon located in Junggye? I was walking home from work around lunchtime and my friends and I saw fire trucks racing past. We didn't think much of it, ate lunch, and then went our seperate ways. On my way home, though, I saw the fire trucks at the aftermath of a fire. It was a very well-known hagwon in my area. A couple of the windows had been smashed out and were lying in shattered pieces on the ground.

[polonius]

[pkang0202]

[R. S. Refugee]

[tomek1]

Wow you must feel a sense of loss.