Safety inspection of electric vehicle charging facilities in apartment underground parking lots

In order to relieve public anxiety over recent electric vehicle fire accidents, Yongin Special City will conduct safety inspections on 19 apartment complexes with more than 100 households where electric vehicle charging facilities are installed underground until September 6. This inspection will be conducted jointly by fire and electrical experts, and will also focus on establishing measures to prevent electric vehicle fires.

[Korean Today] Inspection of electric vehicle charging facilities in 19 apartment complexes with over 100 households. © Reporter Na-yeon Kim

Yongin Special City (Mayor Lee Sang-il) announced that in order to respond to the recent increase in electric vehicle fire accidents, it will conduct safety inspections of 19 apartment complexes with more than 100 households where electric vehicle charging facilities are installed underground until September 6. This inspection will be conducted in cooperation with related organizations such as Gyeonggi Province, Yongin West Fire Station, and Electric Safety Corporation.

In particular, we will focus on inspecting the safety management status of fire and electrical fields of charging facilities installed underground, and closely check the condition of the facilities by comparing the inspection records with the construction completion drawings.

In the firefighting sector, check whether fire extinguishers, sprinklers, and other fire extinguishing equipment and automatic fire detection equipment are operating normally, and check whether suffocating fire extinguishers, which are fire extinguishing devices for electric vehicles, are installed. In addition, check whether a firewall is installed in the electric vehicle-only parking area and whether vehicles are placed in an isolated state.

In the electric field, the external condition of the charging facility, the adequacy of the grounding system, the insulation resistance between the conductive part and the ground, and the normal operation of the charging system will be comprehensively reviewed. If any deficiencies are found during the inspection, immediate remedial measures will be taken and, if necessary, corrective measures will be ordered.

In addition, the city plans to provide electric vehicle fire prevention training to apartment complex management entities in October, and will also conduct safety inspections of electric vehicle charging facilities in directly-operated public parking lots during the same period.

City officials said, “In the event of an electric vehicle fire, it is more difficult to extinguish the fire than with a regular vehicle due to battery thermal runaway, and the damage may be greater.” They added, “We will thoroughly conduct safety inspections to relieve citizens’ anxiety and prevent electric vehicle fire accidents from happening again.”

In addition, the city plans to enact related ordinances to prevent electric vehicle fire accidents that may occur in apartment parking lots as soon as comprehensive measures are prepared at the government level. The ordinance aims to promote the improvement of existing charging facilities and the installation of additional safety facilities.

In July of last year, Yongin Special City enacted the ‘Yongin City Environmentally Friendly Automobile-Only Parking Area and Charging Facility Installation Ordinance’, recommending that electric vehicle charging facilities be installed above ground when constructing new buildings, and stipulating that safety facilities such as direct stairs and fire-resistant walls be installed when installing underground. In addition, as of December 2023, the city has installed 43 slow chargers with overcharge prevention in 32 public facilities in the city to reduce the risk of fire.