A campaign truck promoting Kim Moon-soo, a presidential candidate from the People Power Party, caught fire Friday morning inside an underground tunnel in Yongsan District, central Seoul.

The incident occurred at around 9:12 a.m. as the campaign truck was heading toward Sookmyung Women’s University Station on Seoul Subway Line 4, according to police and fire authorities.

The vehicle entered the Galwol underground tunnel and tilted to the right after losing balance. Panels loaded on the truck toppled over, triggering a fire.

Officials suspect the driver misjudged the tunnel’s clearance, which is 3 meters (10 feet) high. Scorch marks were found on the upper panels, suggesting the vehicle struck the tunnel ceiling. Regulations from the Korea Transportation Safety Authority allow campaign vehicles to be up to 4 meters tall.

Firefighters who responded to the emergency managed to extinguish the blaze within 14 minutes, by 9:26 a.m. Two people were aboard the vehicle at the time, but no injuries were reported.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation. Traffic through the Galwol tunnel was briefly halted following the incident but resumed about 20 minutes later.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY LEE AH-MI [kim.juyeon2@joongang.co.kr]