2/17 일 토픽 두번째 입니다. (숭례문)

[ㅇ ㅔㅍ ㅣ]

Namdaemun`s collapse

Experts blamed poor safety precautions and misjudgment by authorities for the destruction of the 610-year-old landmark gate of Sungnyemun during an overnight fire.

The No. 1 national treasure, better known as Namdaemun, collapsed early yesterday, despite five hours of efforts to put out the fire, leading to major criticism of the judgment of relevant authorities.

Despite the possibility of a flashover, or the near simultaneous ignition of all combustible material in an enclosed area, the fire crew was not aggressive in the early stages of the fire because they feared damaging the cultural property, experts

said. 

"They should have taken a more aggressive approach from the beginning," said Lee Soo-kyung.

"Considering the structure of traditional Korean buildings, spraying water on the exterior can`t do any good; they should have located where the fire started and smothered it there."

Parts of the wooden structure should have been removed for a complete extinguishing of the blaze, but the firefighters merely resorted to spraying water in the beginning, as they were reportedly advised by the Cultural Heritage Administration to be careful not to harm the national treasure.

"I cannot understand how the region`s fire department didn`t have a chart of the No. 1 national treasure, and had to get it from the National Heritage Administration after the fire spread," Lee said.

Kim Yoo-shik, assistant professor of fire defense engineering at Jinju International University, noted that the current fire-prevention rules and the fire hydrants used indoors are not adequate for cultural heritage sites.

The police yesterday questioned an employee of the Jung-gu district office, which over sees cultural properties in the area, regarding possible negligence in management and surveillance.

Sungnyemun is left unguarded between 8 p.m. and 10 a.m. It is watched only by 24-hour security cameras and a surveillance system that detects unauthorized access.

Three district office employees keep an eye on the site during the day, and only one person works on holidays.

The Seoul Metropolitan Fire & Disaster Management Department and the Cultural Heritage Administration explained the technical difficulties in extinguishing the fire to reporters early yesterday morning.

Roof tiles could not be removed because they were frozen, and water did not reach the wooden beams that caught fire underneath the tiles, they said. There were no sprinklers or fire censors on Sungnyemun because it takes only about a minute for a fire crew to reach it, the authorities explained. Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said yesterday that the city government will fully support the Cultural Heritage Administration`s efforts to restore Sungnyumun, and will upgrade maintenance checkups on cultural properties within the capital.

By Kim So-hyun

(sophie@heraldm.com)

<Qusetion>

1. Did you see the fire on Sungnyemun ? how did you feel ?

2. What was the cause of the fire?

3. Should politicians/ authorities be blamed for their neglect of duty?

4. What do you think of cultural properties ? If you were the president, what would you do to protect our  cultural or historical landmarks? (or do you agree with a donation by all the people to restore the former state of Sungnyemun?)

5. Do you have your own treasure ? what is that?

[June(최현경)]

아 감사합니다.^^ 열공할게요 ㅋㅋ

[colin 양현모]

good topic but big sadness

[쭈쭈쭈(류주영)]

참석할께요 곧 봐요~ ㅋㅋㅋ

[훈스(양상훈)]

저도 참석~~ 숭례문 가슴이 마이 아파요 ㅠㅠ

[Friend(배석우)]

숭례문... 타픽이 완전 current event인데....^^ 꿋

[James(장재용)]

많이 빠졌는데요, this weekend 꼭 참석하께요

[June(최현경)]

오랜만이네요~ 꼭 이번주에 뵈요 ㅎㅎㅎ

[적극적으로(박수동)]

오늘 첨으로 참석 함 해보께요..

[olivier(김민)]

정시참석합니다. 이따 뵈요~^^

[Y.S.]

See you

[섹쉬이~가이^^]

스터디는 우수회원님만 참석가능한가요? 공부하고 시포서리~~~

[June(최현경)]

아뇨~ 회원가입 안하시고 오셔도 참석하실 수 있어요^^

[김경호(망구리)]

오케이 오케이.. 마꾼(masato) 이번 주 부터 다시 가동합니다... 여러분 저 보고 싶었죠... 아니라도 상관없음... cuz i've missed you....

[June(최현경)]

어쩐지 왜 안나오시나 했어요~ 일요일에 봅시당^^ ㅋㅋ

[윤양(김윤미)]

보고싶었어요~~~ㅋㅋ 마꾼 친구 오셨던데...ㅎㅎ

[June(최현경)]

마군의 친구는 누군데요? ^^;;