'Zero Livestock Barn Fires'... Jeonnam Province-Jeonnam Fire Headquarters, Fire Prevention Collaboration System Activated

【Financial News Muan=Hwang Taejong Reporter】Jeonnam Province is establishing a collaboration system with the Jeonnam Fire Headquarters to eliminate the continuous occurrence of livestock barn fires and is launching full-scale fire prevention activities.
 According to Jeonnam Province and Jeonnam Fire Headquarters on the 14th, an average of 40-50 livestock barn fires have occurred annually in Jeonnam over the past five years, with the average property damage per incident reaching 100 million won.
 The main causes of fires were △electrical factors (49.3%) △negligence of livestock farmers (27.6%) △mechanical factors (5.4%), and by facility type, they were △cattle barns (48.9%) △pig barns (25.9%) △chicken barns (25.2%).
 Accordingly, the two organizations have decided to promote the establishment of a constant fire prevention system through collaboration under the principle that 'prevention is the best for livestock barn fires.'
 First, Jeonnam Province will distribute preventive equipment such as replacing arc circuit breakers, which are electrical safety devices, and installing fire management systems, and will induce the improvement of outdated barns through the Green Livestock Promotion Fund and barn facility modernization projects. In addition, they plan to establish a rapid dissemination system in case of fire and enhance farmers' voluntary safety awareness through regular safety management promotions.
 The Fire Headquarters will promote a one-stop service for barn facilities from the permission stage to preemptively block the structural causes of property damage expansion in case of barn fires. The main contents focus on structural improvements such as securing separation distances between barn buildings, recommending the installation of sprinkler systems and arc circuit breakers, and securing firefighting access routes (expanding and improving access roads). An arc circuit breaker is a device that detects arcs (sparks) caused by wiring defects and automatically shuts off electrical circuits to prevent fires.
 In addition, to establish a dense fire safety network for livestock farmers, they are significantly contributing to reducing barn fires by conducting activities such as removing dust inside distribution boards, which is a major cause of barn fires (using a tracking cleaner), producing videos on barn fire safety tips, and conducting non-contact (video call) fire safety diagnostics to prevent infectious diseases such as foot-and-mouth disease and avian influenza.
 Furthermore, through collaboration, they plan to significantly reduce the occurrence of barn fires by comprehensively promoting hardware support such as the distribution of barn fire prevention equipment and improvement of outdated barns, as well as software support such as safety inspections and customized consulting.
 Prior to this, Jeonnam Province, in collaboration with relevant organizations, conducted safety investigations and consulting on 3,130 barns from December 2023 to June this year to prevent barn fires, and issued corrective actions to 74 locations with inadequate firefighting equipment, such as missing fire extinguishers and non-operational fire detectors.
 Additionally, in February, they conducted special winter fire prevention education for 2,000 livestock farms vulnerable to fires, focusing on recent barn fire cases and self-inspection methods for electrical equipment.
 This year, a new budget of 600 million won has been allocated to establish a barn fire prevention system, supporting the installation costs of arc circuit breakers and fire management systems at 100 locations, with 6 million won per farm. The fire management system is a device that notifies livestock farmers of potential fire causes and fire detection details, such as lightning, overload, leakage, and power outages, via smartphones.
 Park Hyunsik, Director of the Agriculture and Livestock Food Bureau of Jeonnam Province, said, "By collaborating between the livestock department and the Fire Headquarters, we can proactively respond to barn fires and achieve substantial preventive effects," adding, "Since most fires are preventable disasters, we will concentrate all administrative power to protect the property and safety of livestock farmers."
 Choi Yongcheol, Chief of Jeonnam Fire Headquarters, said, "It is most important to improve structural vulnerabilities in advance for barn fires," adding, "We will do our best to establish a full-cycle safety network from permission to post-management."

hwangtae@fnnews.com Hwang Taejong Reporter