Firefighters rescued from temple bathhouse as wildfire engulfs 1,000-year-old temple

A firefighter taking shelter inside a bathhouse at Gounsa Temple in Uiseong County, North Gyeongsang Province, Tuesday, is drenched in sweat from the extreme heat caused by the raging wildfire. Courtesy of the firefighting team at Goun Temple

“Evacuate! Everyone to the bathhouse, now!”

The urgent command rang out across Goun Temple, a 1,000-year-old Buddhist shrine nestled in the mountains of Uiseong County, North Gyeongsang Province, around 4 p.m. on Tuesday.

As flames closed in and temple halls burned, ten firefighters sprinted toward a concrete bathhouse just 50 meters from the Daeungjeon Hall, their last line of defense.

Despite the devastating wildfire that destroyed 21 of the temple’s 30 historic buildings, there were no casualties among monks, temple staff or firefighters.

The miraculous outcome was thanks to the quick thinking and bravery of two elite fire response teams, whose recollections have now been pieced together in interviews with the Hankook Ilbo.

Concrete sanctuary amid inferno

Firefighters had been stationed at Goun Temple from the afternoon of March 24 as the wildfire threatened the area. Eleven personnel from four fire stations — Gyeongsan, Yecheon, Andong and Mungyeong — worked through the night, spraying down temple buildings with hoses in a bid to defend the complex.

Lee Jong-hyuk, head of disaster response at Gyeongsan Fire Station and commander of the operation, quickly assessed the terrain and identified a concrete bathhouse near the Daeungjeon Hall, which he marked as a possible emergency shelter. “The remote mountain setting meant escape by fire truck would be difficult if the fire closed in,” he later said.

On Tuesday morning, he brought all 10 crew members to the bathhouse and told them, “If I give the signal, don’t hesitate, run straight here.”

By 3:15 p.m., a high wind warning was issued for the Goun Temple area, and the fire crews sprang into action, fearing the worst. Flames were accelerating with the gusts, and panic began to ripple through the grounds.

“Get out now! It’s too dangerous!” firefighters shouted to monks, temple staff and laborers who were trying to carry out statues wrapped in fireproof cloth. Even forestry officials on site were urged to evacuate immediately.

Just moments after the monks and temple staff made it out, the fire surged over the mountain ridge and barreled straight into Goun Temple.

“Shut off the engines and grab your air tanks—get to the bathhouse now!” Lee ordered, his voice cutting through the rising chaos.

He stood outside, scanning the grounds until every firefighter had made it into the concrete shelter. Then he stepped inside and closed the heavy door behind him.

Inside the dark, smoke-filling bunker, Lee pulled out his phone and dialed 119. It took five agonizing minutes to get through amid the flood of wildfire emergency calls. “We need the Rapid Intervention Team and as many fire engines as you can send urgently,” he told the dispatcher.

Meanwhile, the fire raged outside, consuming centuries-old buildings one by one. Smoke began to seep into the bathhouse. Acting quickly, the crew peeled off their flame-resistant pants, soaked them in water and stuffed them into the doorframe to keep the smoke out. They grabbed socks from the floor to seal the gaps in a broken ventilation duct.

Through a small window, they could see nothing but flames. “It was like looking out into a sea of fire,” one firefighter recalled.

As oxygen ran low and exhaustion set in, tension filled the cramped space. One team member, his voice trembling, called a loved one. Another simply sat in silence, eyes closed, trying to conserve every breath.

Lee tried to keep spirits up. “Just one more hour,” he told them. “We’ll all walk out of here together, hand in hand, smiling. You trust me, right? If you follow me, we’ll make it out alive.”

A concrete-walled bathhouse stands about 50 meters in front of the Daeungjeon Hall at Goun Temple in Uiseong County, North Gyeongsang Province, Tuesday. The interior was left in complete darkness after power was cut due to the wildfire. Courtesy of Lee Jong-hyuk

No casualties, but visible scars

At that moment, a rescue team was racing toward Gounsa to save their fellow firefighters. Alerted by the fire control center, seven members of the North Gyeongsang 119 Special Response Unit’s third team, dispatched as a Rapid Intervention Team, rushed to the scene.

The journey was anything but easy. From the village about 3 kilometers from the temple, the team, led by Kim Nam-seok and other firefighters, was met with flying embers whipped up by strong winds. The rescue vehicle crawled forward, stopping and starting repeatedly as visibility dropped and fire threatened to block the road.

“Mentally prepare yourselves,” Kim told the team. “And if you haven’t already, call your families.”

Even for seasoned veterans who had saved lives at countless disaster sites, the thought of rescuing their own in unfamiliar terrain brought a new kind of pressure. Thirty minutes after entering the village, the team finally reached the entrance to Goun Temple.

Buildings at Goun Temple catch fire as wildfires spread across the grounds on Tuesday.
Courtesy of the on-site firefighting team

“We managed to get in touch with the trapped team waiting near the gate,” recalled Kim, the rescue team leader. “That’s how we learned where they had taken shelter.”

Around 6 p.m., the two teams finally met in front of the Daeungjeon Hall. Relief swept over the trapped firefighters.

“All 11 of them had this look on their faces like, ‘We made it,’” said rescue team leader Kim. “They were clearly overwhelmed and so happy to see us,” added team member Kang Dae-hyun.

The Goun Temple defense crew hesitated, their eyes lingering on the main hall, fearing it might soon be lost to the flames. But the Rapid Intervention Team insisted they evacuate immediately. “If that building by the entrance collapses in the fire, you’ll be completely cut off," they warned.

All 11 were safely loaded into the rescue bus. “I remember watching the black smoke trail down the road the entire way out,” said Song Hong-jik, a firefighter from the Yecheon Fire Station. “Honestly, the way out felt even more terrifying.”

The two teams pulled off the evacuation without a single casualty. Their faces were flushed from the heat. Their hair was singed, one phone was shattered, and the lights on one of the fire trucks had melted — silent witnesses to how close it came.

“We’re all firefighters, but I have to say — what the rescue team did, I’m just really grateful,” said Song.

Lee, the commander, echoed the sentiment. “It broke my heart to watch cultural heritage burn,” he said, “but the fact that no one was hurt, that’s what I take comfort in.”

Goun Temple buildings inside the complex burn as members of the North Gyeongsang 119 Special Response Unit’s Third Team arrive at the parking lot near the entrance on Tuesday.
Courtesy of Fire Lt. Kang Dae-hyun

Superheroes even on the way home

Even after their harrowing escape, the team’s work wasn’t done. While following the rescue bus back, their operations vehicle detoured to Soho-ri, a village in Andong City, where 20 residents were reported to be trapped. Between Tuesday and Wednesday, the team rescued more than 60 people.

The North Gyeongsang 119 Special Response Unit, based in Pohang, has since continued operations, grabbing short naps in fire trucks, support buses or on benches.

Though major fires in five counties were finally brought under control by Friday, the team remained on the ground. As of Sunday, they had moved on to support rescue efforts in Cheongsong County.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.