Kumho Tire Co. Inc. is still evaluating what comes next after a May 17 fire at one of its largest tire production facilities.
In a statement from CEO Jung Il-taek, he apologized for the fire and said the tiremaker is working to determine the cause of the blaze.
The Gwangju plant produces both passenger and TBR tires, as well as aircraft tires. Its production accounts for 19.7% of Kumho's total global capacity, the company said. Production was halted as a result of the fire.
Here is the text of the company's apology in full:
"Regarding the fire accident that occurred at the Gwangju factory on May 17, Kumho Tire would like to express its deep apologies to everyone who was damaged by this fire, and we would like to bow our head and sincerely apologize for causing concern to local residents.
"Currently we are working closely with the fire department and other relevant authorities to extinguish the fire and we are doing our best to prevent the spread of the fire and complete the rapid extinguishing work.
"We, Kumho Tire, immediately organize an emergency response team to take a systemic and responsible response in all procedures such as damage recovery, resident protection, and cooperation with relevant authorities. In addition, we will accurately identify the cause of the fire and prepare measures to prevent this from happening again.
"In addition, I sincerely thank the fire authorities and all those involved for their efforts to extinguish the fire.
"Once again, we deeply apologize for the inconvenience and concern caused by this accident, and Kumho Tire will do its best to promptly fix the accident and take responsible follow-up measures."
