Probe begins into cause of Air Busan fire

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on Wednesday dispatched officials and set up an emergency response team in joint with the National Fire Agency to investigate the cause of a fire that broke out on an Air Busan flight Tuesday evening. At 10:26 p.m., the Air Busan plane, an Airbus A321-200, bound for Hong Kong from Gimhae International Airport in Busan, caught fire at its tail before takeoff. All 176 people on board -- 169 passengers and seven crew members -- managed to evacuate safely by 11:31 p.m. Seven people were being treated for injuries as of Wednesday afternoon, with four of them being crew members with chest discomfort due to smoke inhalation and three with tailbone and back pain sustained while evacuating. With testimonies of some passengers suggesting the fire broke out in an overhead compartment, acting President and Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok on Wednesday ordered a thorough investigation into the case. “With some passengers even having suffered injuries while evacuating, swift follow-up measures are called for,” Choi said in his message released by the Finance Ministry. According to the Transport Ministry’s aviation technical information system, the Air Busan aircraft had been in service for over 17 years, with no accident history in the past 12 years. Airplanes come under tighter inspection by the ministry after 20 years of service. Meanwhile, passengers were quoted in local news reports as saying the fire appeared to have started from baggage stored in an overhead luggage compartment at the back of the plane.<br/>