Carbon dioxide leak at Samsung Electronics plant causes 1 death, 2 injuries

The damaged wall of a storage facility for carbon dioxide at a Samsung Electronics plant in Giheung, Gyeonggi Province.

Authorities investigate company’s delayed incident report

It has been discovered that a carbon dioxide leak that caused one death and two injuries at a Samsung Electronics plant in Giheung, Gyeonggi Province, on Sept. 4 occurred when the valves to 133 CO2 storage containers were opened for unknown reasons and discharged all of their contents.

The Gyeonggi Province Fire and Disaster Headquarters formed a joint team with police, the National Forensic Service, the Ministry of Employment and Labor, and the Korea Gas Safety Corporation to conduct an inspection of the Samsung Electronics Giheung Plant in Yongin on Sept. 6.

Examining a CO2 gas storage area for fire extinguishing equipment on the first basement level underneath the plant’s 6-3 line where the accident occurred, the team learned that the death and injuries were caused when all 133 45-kg containers discharged their contents. Two open selection valves were found on CO2 fire extinguishing equipment, one of them showing damage due to high pressure.

The nearby area of a Samsung Electronics plant in Giheung, Gyeonggi Province, where a fatal carbon dioxide leak occurred.

Emergency announcement equipment was also found to be non-functional. The team is currently investigating the possibility that the CO2 leaked due to unexplained damage to the part of the pipes that connect the CO2 storage tank with the electrical room.

Some observers are also calling for an investigation of Samsung Electronics for its delay in reporting the incident. Gyeonggi Province stated that Samsung was in violation of its reporting obligations by waiting until 3:48 pm on Sept. 4 – around two hours after the accident occurred – to report it to the fire department.

In a message on his Facebook page, Gyeonggi Gov. Lee Jae-myung wrote, “Swift reporting and countermeasures are paramount, if only to save lives and prevent secondary accidents.” Lee also pledged to “root out these kinds of delayed responses.”

Each year, the Giheung plant where the accident occurred uses around 120,000 tons of hazardous chemicals of 20 or so types, including sodium hydroxide, sulfuric acid, hydrochloric acid, and hydrogen peroxide. It is required to report any accidents immediately due to the risk of a large-scale disaster if these chemicals are leaked. Speaking at a Democratic Party supreme council meeting at the National Assembly that day, council member Park Ju-min called for a thorough investigation.

“This is not the only case of belated reporting by Samsung Electronics. We will never break the chain of accidents if we allow this sort of ‘let’s just gloss this one over’ approach,” he said.

Samsung Electronics responded by saying its “priority rescue measures are in accordance with the legislative aims of the Fire Services Act.”

Meanwhile, Samsung Electronics is facing accusations of attempting to minimize the incident after it emerged that while the company did report the death of an individual surnamed Lee, 25, and the injuries of two others surnamed Kim, 55, and Ju, 27, a fire brigade member who found the victims was also subsequently hospitalized.

“The fire brigade member in question was the first person to discover the accident scene and became fatigued while working alone at first to move the injured workers and perform CPR while wearing an anti-contamination suit,” Samsung Electronics explained.

“We learned about the hospitalization early this morning, and there was no intention of minimizing the incident,” it added.

By Hong Yong-duk, South Gyeonggi correspondent

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