National Fire Agency to Conduct Focused Inspections at 149 Large-Scale Hazardous-Material Facilities, Cross-Deploying Inspectors from Other Regions

[Financial News] The National Fire Agency (NFA) will cross-deploy inspection personnel from fire headquarters and fire stations in other regions to large-scale hazardous-material storage and handling facilities to assess their safety management. The move is intended to improve the objectivity and expertise of inspections, moving beyond the previous system in which only inspectors from the jurisdictional area participated.
The NFA announced on the 3rd that it had formed the “2026 Central Hazardous Materials Safety Investigation Team” and would conduct fire inspections at 149 sites across three selected large-scale hazardous-material storage and handling facilities from the 16th through September 16.
The central investigation team consists of 55 members, including the head of the NFA’s Hazardous Materials Safety Division, who serves as team leader; inspection personnel from the NFA and metropolitan and provincial fire headquarters and fire stations; and officials from the Korea Fire Institute.
A key feature of the inspections is the cross-deployment of inspection personnel from fire headquarters and fire stations in regions outside the jurisdictions of the facilities being inspected. The NFA introduced this approach to reduce regional disparities in inspections and enhance the expertise and objectivity of inspections at large-scale hazardous-material facilities.
Under the Hazardous Materials Safety Management Act, the investigation team will focus on whether the facilities meet required standards and comply with operational requirements governing the storage and handling of hazardous materials.
The team will examine the location, structure, and equipment standards for manufacturing facilities and other sites, as well as standards for the storage, handling, and transportation of hazardous materials. It will also check whether operators have fulfilled their obligations to conduct regular self-inspections and assess the status of detailed and interim regular inspections. The inspection will further cover whether hazardous-material safety managers have been properly appointed and alternates designated, and whether in-house fire brigades and preventive regulations are being properly operated.
If violations are identified during the inspections, the team plans to notify the relevant fire station so that measures required under applicable laws—including criminal charges, administrative fines, or administrative orders—can be taken. Even when an issue does not constitute a legal violation, matters posing a high fire risk will be addressed through administrative guidance to ensure improvement.
The NFA will analyze major violations identified during the inspections and use the findings to improve the system. It plans to identify cases in which special structures or new technologies are not properly reflected in the current technical standards for hazardous materials, and to develop improvements to regulations and technical standards.
Song Ho-young, director of the NFA’s Fire Prevention Bureau, said, “Proactive inspections based on expertise are important for the safety management of large-scale hazardous-material storage and handling facilities. We will closely examine risks at the sites and actively address any deficiencies identified.”
[email protected] Lee Bo-mi Reporter