Fire at SK Hynix factory in Cheongju sends 8 to hospital, prompts evacuation of 4,000

A fire broke out in a gas room at SK Hynix's Cheongju Campus 4 factory on Friday, sending eight workers to the hospital and prompting the evacuation of some 4,000 employees.

The incident is the latest in a string of safety scares at the same campus. A fire and fluorine leak occurred there on June 1, followed by a chemical accident on Wednesday, raising growing concerns about safety at the site.

The fire started at around 9:55 a.m. Friday in a gas room on the second floor of the M15X factory at Cheongju Campus 4. Sprinklers activated and extinguished the blaze within about 10 minutes.

The fire is believed to have started while six workers were mixing fluorine and nitrogen in a cabinet inside the gas room.

SK Hynix immediately evacuated all approximately 4,000 employees on the campus as a precaution against a possible gas leak. Eight workers who complained of dizziness were taken to the company's on-site hospital.

Fire department measurements confirmed that no gas had in fact leaked.

On June 1, a fire broke out during the same process in a sixth-floor gas room connecting the M15X and M15 factories at Cheongju Campus 4, releasing a small amount of fluorine — 5 parts per million. Fluorine is toxic to humans. The investigation into that accident reportedly returned an inconclusive finding on the cause.

On Wednesday, a liquid believed to be TMAH (tetramethylammonium hydroxide) was discovered at the Cheongju facility, and two workers were taken to the hospital.

"Since the accident occurred during the same process, we will thoroughly investigate the cause and work to prevent a recurrence," an SK Hynix official said, adding that production equipment remains in normal operation.

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