On February 14th, the last day of 2021's Lunar New Year holiday, at around 4:55am, a fire broke out in cosmetic shops in Myeongdong, Seoul.
Source: YTN
The fire burned most of three buildings and was extinguished in a little over 3 hours at 8:13am. A total of 22 firefighting equipments and 250 people were dispatched to fight the fire.
According to sources, no one was in the building when the fire broke out, but a 65-year-old man, who was on the roof of a nearby building, was treated at the scene after inhaling heavy smoke.
The buildings affected by the fire include CLUBCLIO, Holika Holika and Banila Co., located next to the Myeongdong Theater.
Rental prices in the once-vibrant Myeongdong area are expensive. Real estate professionals state that shops located in the middle of Myeongdong, next to the Myeongdong Theatre, could be as high as 100 million won (approx. 90,000 USD) per month.
One of the cosmetic shops has informed that they have been struggling financially since the pandemic, with sales decreased by 98%.
