▲ Firefighters extinguish a blaze at a cold storage warehouse in the southwestern county of Wando on April 12, 2026, in this photo provided a reader. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
▲ Firefighters extinguish a blaze at a cold storage warehouse in the southwestern county of Wando on April 12, 2026, in this photo provided a reader. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

(LEAD) warehouse-fire

(LEAD) 2 firefighters killed in cold storage warehouse fire

(ATTN: UPDATES with more details throughout; ADDS photo)

SEOUL, April 12 (Yonhap) -- A fire broke out at a cold storage warehouse in a southwestern county Sunday, leaving two firefighters dead as the blaze intensified during rescue operations, authorities said.

The fire started at around 8:25 a.m. at a fisheries processing company's warehouse in the county of Wando, South Jeolla Province, prompting authorities to mobilize more than 100 firefighters. It was extinguished after about three hours, according to the Wando Fire Station.

Two firefighters became trapped inside the warehouse and were later found dead, it noted.

According to fire authorities, the blaze is believed to have started while workers were using a torch to remove paint from the building as part of floor-leveling and repaving work.

A fishery company official inhaled smoke and was sent to a nearby hospital, but was not in life-threatening condition.

Lee Min-seok, chief of the Wando Fire Station, said the two firefighters were unable to escape after reentering the site to extinguish residual flames following the initial operation.

"Oil mist presumed to have been floating near the ceiling exploded," Lee said at a press briefing. "The operations chief ordered seven firefighters to evacuate after spotting black smoke and flames via radio communication, but two were unable to exit."

Fire authorities said they plan to investigate the exact cause of the blaze.

Investigators suspect that epoxy flooring, which is highly flammable, may have contributed to the rapid spread of the flames, compounded by the presence of sandwich panels in parts of the structure, which likely hampered firefighting efforts.

President Lee Jae Myung was briefed on the incident and instructed fire authorities to mobilize all available resources to put out the fire and carry out rescue operations, presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said in a written briefing.

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