HUG conducts special safety inspection at stalled construction site

The Korea Housing and Urban Guarantee Corporation (HUG) said Friday it conducted a special on-site inspection Wednesday at a guarantee-execution project site where construction has been suspended, to assess serious accident prevention measures.

The inspection was a follow-up to a review of three project sites last month, including the Gwangju Sugi-dong Korea Adelium development in Dong-gu, Gwangju, South Jeolla Province. HUG said the additional inspection was carried out to prevent disasters that could arise from extreme heat and typhoons.

The inspection targeted the Asan Bangchuk-dong Arni First project site in Asan, South Chungcheong Province, focusing on safety management practices under the Serious Accidents Punishment Act and the Occupational Safety and Health Act, as well as emergency disaster response systems.

Construction at the site was halted following a rental deposit guarantee incident. With on-site personnel limited, the site faces a range of safety risks, including flooding and structural collapse during typhoons, electrical short circuits, and unauthorized entry by outsiders.

HUG Standing Auditor Lee Myung-won personally toured the site, examining the condition of drainage and flood-prevention facilities, the securing of temporary structures, and rest facilities for security workers during the heatwave.

"Typhoons and heavy downpours can cause severe damage to suspended construction sites in a very short time, making it critical to eliminate risk factors in advance," Lee said. "We will continue inspections and improvements from an audit perspective to ensure that management's safety policies are genuinely working on the ground."

Meanwhile, HUG plans to proactively address risk factors at guarantee-execution project sites nationwide through joint inspections by management and the audit division, and to further strengthen on-site management systems to prevent serious accidents and protect the assets of pre-sale contract holders.