Apocalyptic highway fire exposes dangers of plastic tunnels

Automobiles on Friday burned in fire that broke out in a noise-barrier tunnel on the Second Gyeongin Expressway, which connects Incheon to Seongnam [YONHAP]

 
An apocalyptic conflagration left a stretch of highway near Seoul a mess of molten plastic and melted cars.
 
And it left relatives of the victims — the dead now numbering five — in utter disbelief.
 
“It can’t be your dad,” a woman sobbed at a hospital with her daughters after hearing that her husband is one of the deceased.
 
The fire broke out Thursday afternoon at the North Uiwang Interchange on the Second Gyeongin Expressway, also known as highway 110, which runs south of Seoul from Incheon toward the east and into the center of the country.
 
According to investigators, a burning garbage truck ignited the plastic, translucent material of a noise-barrier tunnel that covered the elevated highway, and that 830-meter (2,723-foot) tunnel burst into flames, trapping cars and people in their cars.
 
In addition to the five dead, 41 were injured and three remain in critical condition.  
 
The woman’s 66-year-old husband cannot be identified with certainty, and DNA testing will have to be done. The family was told the tests will be completed in a day or two.
 
“Who should we blame?” she asked as she cried over her husband’s death. “Is this the fault of the truck driver?”
 
The victim worked as a personal driver, a friend said. Before he was found dead, he called his boss and said he was inhaling smoke at the scene.
 
“He really wanted to become a taxi driver,” the friend recalled.
 
Cho Nam-seok, 59, who was at the accident site recalls hearing a loud thud after he barely escaped from his melting car. “A friend I was with in the car was not able to get out,” Cho said.
 
His head is wrapped with bandages, and the back of his hand and left ear are severely burned.
 
The plastic material that formed the wall of the tunnel is being blamed.  
 
According to officials, the tunnel was made of polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA), commonly known as acrylic.
 
The noise-barrier tunnels in Korea are usually made out of PMMA, polycarbonate or glass, with PMMA being used most due to its low price. 
 
In terms of safety, it is the worst, according to experts.
 
Compared to other materials, PMMA is easily ignited, melts quickly and tends to continue burning, according to a report from Korea Expressway Corporation in 2018.
 
As the fire spread to the tunnel, the acrylic material melted and fell on the road and vehicles, which would have accelerated the fire.
 
“As the public and the press have pointed out, the material of the noise-barrier tunnel seems to be the major issue of the accident,” said Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Land Won Hee-ryong after he visited the accident site on Friday morning.
 
“Concerns on about PMMA material for being flammable have always been made by experts.”
 
A total of 55 noise-barrier tunnels in Korea are to be fully inspected, while those still under construction will be finished with safer materials.
 
Police started a full-scale investigation of the accident on Friday.
 
The Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency brought the garbage truck driver in for questioning on the possible charge of involuntary manslaughter. The driver reportedly said a fire broke out in his truck following the sound of an explosion.
 
Authorities have blocked off 20 kilometers of the expressway.

BY KIM JUNG-MIN, SON SUNG-BAE, KIM HONG-BUM, CHO JUNG-WOO [cho.jungwoo1@joongang.co.kr]