The entrance to Ahyun Building. 11:10pm.
A large amount of water from five fire trucks was being shot at the building.
"Water pressure, more!"
The water from the tarpaulin added to suppress the burning point of the flames sent sparks all over the building.
Firefighters in fire suits approached the flames more aggressively, regardless of the heat.
The firefighters on the first floor were carrying out the suppression work with a hose and looking at the hideous remains of the building destroyed by the fire.
"Captain, did everyone in the building evacuate? The smoke will go up to the top floor."
"I don't know. We just have to wish they all came out quickly."
Bzzzt.
-The first response captain is still inside the building. We found another survivor on the 4th floor, and two members are currently in transit. We need additional people here.
The rescue team leader of Mapo-seo, who was assisting with the hose, immediately responded to the radio.
"Application for Mapo-seo. All personnel except the members working on suppressing the underground combustion point are supported for life search."
-Yes, captain.
-Understood.
At the same time, on the 5th floor of the annex of Ahyun Building.
Crash!
Dowook broke a window at the end of the common hallway and looked down the hall with his lantern.
[T/N: Lantern was used to describe the flashlight stuck on the helmet in the novel so I just stuck with it.]
The smoke from the explosion just now transformed the fifth floor into a space where visibility could not be secured. If this continued, there was a high possibility of suffocation within a few minutes.
He quickly continued to talk, opening the box of the descending belt on the wall.
"From now on, we're going to go down this way one at a time."
Lee Ji-seok assisted from the side and hung a snug hook on the support.
Dowook saw the three people standing behind with a belt. He told Lim Seon-ah, who kept coughing and crying due to the thick smoke.
"Seon-ah, go down first."
"Me? Me?”
Lee Ji-seok threw a reel with a rope wrapped around the ground. Whirling, the line that fell touched the ground.
"Daewon-nim…"
For Lim Seon-ah, who looked afraid that she had to rely on a single rope from the fifth floor, Dowook hung the belt on and pulled the fixed ring forward.
Dowook put the two ropes attached to the reel tightly in Lim Seon-ah’s trembling hands and calmly said.
"I know it's hard. However, in an accident like this, life flashes by in a second of hesitation. Close your eyes and take courage. Like your boyfriend."
"B-boyfriend?"
At Lim Seon-ah's gaze, Han Jin-gu turned his head with an awkward look.
Dowook put one foot on the window frame and assisted Lim Sun-ah's arm to guide her outside.
"Be careful of the glass pieces. Yes. Like that."
Outside the window, Lim Seon-ah hung on a rope and saw people crying inside. Han Jin-gu came right next to her and said.
"It's the same as a ride in the amusement park.”
"Who?"
"Me. Stop crying and go down."
As soon as she wiped away the tears with her sleeves, Lim Seon-ah's body began to descend.
Dowook spoke into the walkie-talkie attached to his shoulder.
"Back of the building. The descending stage has begun."
Bzzzt.
-Confirmed. Paramedics are waiting downstairs.
The health trainer got on after Lim Seon-ah settled on the ground. When Dowook saw the man hanging on the rope, he put his mouth to the walkie-talkie.
"The patient is sweating a lot. Please prescribe painkillers and fluids right away."
The man nodded to Dowook in thanks. The descending man settled on the ground. It was Han Jin-gu's turn.
Han Jin-gu, who was familiar with the belt on his chest, looked back at Dowook.
"Thank you, Daewon-nim."
"I'm more thankful. Good job, Jin-gu."
While Han Jin-gu was going down, the reception light shone on Dowook’s radio.
-This is the command post on the spot. There was a 119 text message report, and it was information that a patient with a respiratory attack was isolated on the fifth floor of the shopping district. Is there anyone who can check it?
-It's near the emergency exit on the 4th floor, but it's very difficult to secure a view. I'll go up and start searching right away.
In the midst of this, there were more injured people. Dowook turned to the surroundings. There was nothing to be seen in the smoke-filled area.
Dowook shouted inward just in case.
"Patient! Is there a patient here?"
The answer did not come back. In the meantime, the belt and rope, which had finished Han Jin-gu's descent, came up again.
"Doctor, please go down. The inside is like this, we have to leave it to the latecomers now."
Lee Ji-seok's words were natural. Dowook nodded, too.
When the belt was hanging on his body.
Tingle.
He felt a sensation that stimulated his fingertips somewhere. He didn't know what kind it was, but he could tell as soon as he felt it that someone was nearby.
The location reported by radio was too far to be thought of as a firefighter.
All he had to do now was ride and go down. But his feet wouldn't move.
Lee Ji-seok's eyes grew bigger as he saw Dowook loosening the belt again.
"I'll be the last one to go. The doctor has done enough.”
"The patient is next to me, so I can't pretend I didn't see."
"Next to you?"
Dowook turned his head in the direction of someone's sense delivered through his special sense. Clothing store. No, next to it. It was near the bathroom.
The distance was about 15m.
Dowook put his mouth on the walkie-talkie.
"HQ. Please respond HQ. I think I heard the survivor in the bathroom on the left side of the SS clothing store. After checking, if I find anyone, I'll bring them near the ventilated descending force."
Lee Ji-seok also closely followed Dowook running through smoke and darkness.
Crack!
Dowook, who opened the bathroom door and lit the lantern around, found a man lying in front of the sink with his cell phone in his hand.
When he ran and checked, the level of consciousness had decreased a lot due to suffocation from smoke. He kept muttering words like "swag" or "flex."
‘What kind of sense did you send?’
He didn't know who it was, but thanks to the man's exceptional sense, he was able to discover him like this. He was a fairly lucky survivor.
Dowook turned to Lee Ji-seok.
"Hold his legs."
"Yes!"
He was trying to drag him out, but the man who forcefully opened his eyes saw Dowook.
"Firefighter…"
"Patient, hold your breath a little bit. You inhaled a lot of smoke."
"Over there… My crew…"….”
The man pointed at it with his finger. It was a sign that there was another patient, so Lee Ji-seok ran right away and opened the door.
"Doctor! There's someone who's unconscious here, too!"
"Bring them out! We don't have time!”
He hung both hands between the man's armpits and pulled him back. Although he was heavy, it was worth dragging him out, so Dowook did his best.
15 meters. 10 meters. Five meters…
Dowook arrived next to the descending force and stuck his head out of the open window.
"Pfft! Heuk…. heuk….."
The smoke made his eyes tear and his nose run. First, he took a breath and turned his head.
"Daewon-nim, from this side, fresh air…"….”
He couldn't see Lee Ji-seok, who should have followed behind.
"Daewon-nim!"
Bzzzt.
"Headquarters. Lee Ji-seok is not visible. Lee Jiseok is…….”
Dowook hurriedly radioed and saw three headlights seen through the smoke.
Additional rescue teams equipped with fire suits and air respirators were approaching the collapsed Lee Ji-seok and an unconscious patient in both arms. They arrived by a narrow margin.
Shim Jae-man, team leader of Yongsan Fire Station, who was at the forefront, gave Dowook an additional respirator that led to an oxygen tank.
"We're a little late, captain."
Team leader Shim reported to the headquarters by walkie-talkie while inhaling clean air through the respirator.
"Met the on-site captain of Yongsan rescue team 1. The 119 caller and additional patient have been secured. Both are unconscious."
Bzzzt.
-Confirmed. The ladder truck is approaching the 5th floor. Transfer to the ladder with the unconscious patients.
Team leader Shim asked Dowook who took a deep breath.
"You were here, doctor."
"My shift isn't over yet."
Team leader Shim watched Dowook joking lightly and smiled.
"Doctor, what do you usually do to make this happen? Are you from a special rescue team?"
"A surgeon. First of all."
"First of all?"
Dowook turned to the fallen patient. He knew what sense stimulated him.
He felt his body riding a beat now, and he felt a desire to rhyme the "Sir" of surgeon by adding the "Sir" of company.
[T/N: It doesn’t make sense in English but they both begin with the same syllable in Korean.]
This man was a rapper.
"Dr. Dowook!"
Lee Ji-seok opened his eyes with a scream. Looking around, he realized that this was inside the stretcher of an ambulance and sat up.
"You woke up. Are you breathing well?"
When he turned his head, he saw Professor Min Eung-sik's face.
"I lost consciousness during the rescue work. What about the others? Are they all safe?”
Professor Min nodded.
"The critical patient found during the evacuation was transferred to the hospital, and the first team of paramedics is providing medical support at the site. Can you see the team leader?”
Lee Ji-seok's eyes were on Han Min-gyu.
Holding his son Han Jin-gu's hand covered with a blanket and patting his back.
Tonight, team leader Han Min-gyu, who calmly planned and made a quick decision to save those trapped in there, was like the incarnation of the spirit of sacrifice.
However, he was also smiling broadly at his son's survival. It was the moment he wanted to call his mom.
After finishing the conversation with his son, Han Min-gyu approached the ambulance. And he saw Lee Ji-seok.
"Why are you crying?"
"I know. Calmness. Joy or sadness is up to the patient’s family.….”
Han Min-gyu, who approached his junior who started crying openly, put his hand on his shoulder.
"Thank you. Thanks to you, my child came back alive."
"It's not thanks to me…… Crying… It's because of the doctor…………… And this…… I'm crying instead of you."
"Okay, okay."
Han Min-gyu, who was patting Lee Ji-seok on the back, headed for Dowook who was disinfecting a patient's torn forehead.
-Please do what you can as a doctor. I beg you.
What he said in the daytime event.
But–
Could these things be said to be things that doctors could do? Even if he had climbed up there with a healthy body, he would not have been confident that he could save so many people safely.
Bzzzt.
– Team leader, we're running out of disinfectant cotton pads. Can we get supplies? There are quite a few patients with lacerations waiting for transfer here.
Dowook’s radio.
"I'll ask for additional supplies, sir. Oh, and Jiseok woke up."
-Is that so?
"He’s crying like a snot-nosed brat, so I can't send him to the doctor right away."
-Haha. Tell him to come slowly. He must have inhaled a lot of smoke.
Han Min-gyu climbed into the passenger seat. Communicating with the headquarters, he turned to two buildings where the flames were almost extinguished.
Weewoo weewoo!
The area around the scene was full of red lights with a loud engine sound.
The sound and light were urgent and desperate, but the appearance of firefighters busy here and there was enough to make them feel relieved.
* * *
[07:00 News Special Part 2 – Ahyeon-dong Underground Fire]
Last night, a fire in the basement of LT Communication in Seodaemun-gu paralyzed major networks and the Internet in Seoul.
The reporting system of the police station and the fire department was rendered inoperable, and even the call phone, a means of contacting the medical staff, was disrupted at the hospital.
…….
It's not just unfortunate news. The audience of "Show Me the Rhyme," who were trapped in the building where the flames moved, were able to evacuate safely with the activities of a rescue team.
A city hall official commented on the situation as he said, "If we failed to keep the golden time of 15 minutes in a situation where all communication is paralyzed, there would have been a catastrophe in which all 323 visitors would have died."
Meanwhile, rapper Jin-Q, who almost lost his life while guarding his colleague who had a seizure during the evacuation, will be making a cheering song for the firefighters who saved him and his colleague…….
Seodaemun Fire Station, Sunday at 9 am.
A woman in her mid-50s with sharp eyes stood on the podium of a multipurpose room full of reporters.
-Chief! Is the cause of the fire an underground gas leak?
"It's unlikely that it's an external factor, such as fire or arson. But the exact cause of the fire is not known. The ventilator and facility debris are left to the National Forensic Service."
-There is a rumor that outsiders, not firefighters, played an active role in the evacuation of the concert hall, which has become a hot topic!
"It was a volunteer, not an outsider. The emergency team at Seodaemun Fire Station will continue to thoroughly cooperate with Myeong Sae hospital where Park Dowook is located to protect the safety of citizens."
In front of reporters, the chief's words, which only mentioned Myeong Sae hospital specifically, contained infinite trust.
The rescue team leader approached and whispered to the chief, who continued to answer the questions. The chief, who nodded, spoke to the reporters.
"This is the end of the press conference. There's still an important event left."
Reporters' flashes followed the chief leaving the multipurpose room.
"Everyone, attention! Bow!"
[T/N: Bowing is considered a greeting of respect and the lower you bow the more you respect the other, sort of like a salute, I guess. Usually, most people simply nod their heads in greeting. If it’s toward someone you really respect, you bow at the waist at a 90° angle.]
After 24 hours of volunteer work, the firefighters who came back bowed all together.
Han Min-gyu spoke to the volunteer workers who seemed to have returned from the war.
"Thank you for your hard work. Go back now and rest well."
He was about to declare dissolution, but the fire department’s chief walked out of the back door.
The crew straightened their postures at the same time. Han Min-gyu also faced the chief with a straight posture.
"Team leader Han. Did you finish your shift?"
"Yes, chief."
"The members move to their respective positions. Wait a minute, volunteer workers.”
She looked back at the volunteers with bold eyes.
"I'm the chief conductor of Seodaemun Fire Station."
Last name Ji. First name Hwi-ja.
As soon as she said her unusual name, voices of "What?" and "No way?" popped out among the doctors from Myeong Sae hospital, which was concentrated on one side.
[T/N: Reason why the doctors from Myeong Sae were so surprised is because traditionally, siblings had the same character in their given name. This isn’t done as much anymore though. But in this case, there is a high chance that the chief of the fire department is the sister of the chief of the emergency center at Myeong Sae.]
"I got news about the Ahyeon-dong accident last night, so I'll just let you know. The hospital where the critical patient was sent contacted us, and said the patient has recovered his consciousness. Thank you, everyone. It's like a miracle that the death toll is zero in a major disaster of this scale."
The chief bowed politely toward the volunteers.
"Life is dignified and not worth more than that. Your voluntary participation has sublimely preserved its value."
Next to Chief Ji, the event planner Yoon Gwon-ryul, and the district official approached and greeted the volunteers once again.
A poster of volunteer workers located at the entrance of the fire station gently waved in the wind.
—–
Sync: Veteran first aid team leader's quick response method
Action: Skilled emergency response becomes possible to patients in crisis.
