South Korea resumes operations at state data center after fire

​​​​​​​By Berk Kutay Gokmen

ISTANBUL (AA) - South Korea began Sunday to gradually restore the administrative computer network at the state data center following a fire caused by a battery explosion, Seoul-based Yonhap News reported.

The fire started Friday at the National Information Resources Service in the central city of in Daejeon after a lithium-ion battery exploded pm a fifth-floor computer room.

The Interior Ministry said as of 7 am (2200GMT Saturday), more than 50% of the network’s devices had been restored. Of the 767 key security-related devices, 99% were operational.

It added that 551 unaffected computer systems would be gradually restarted to check if services are running properly.

Of the 647 government network systems at the center, 96 were believed to be damaged, including the mobile ID and online postal services. Among affected systems, 436 are public services and 211 are internal government networks.

"The government is making efforts to swiftly restore the administrative system. We will disclose the progress in the recovery work and the cause of the fire in a transparent manner," said Kim Kwang Yong, head of the Disaster Safety Management headquarters.

Fire and police officials plan to inspect the site to determine the cause of the blaze.

Officials said the explosion occurred in an uninterruptible power supply battery while workers were disconnecting it to relocate it to the basement.

The fire was extinguished by 6 pm (0900GMT) Saturday, about 22 hours after it began.

Separately on Sunday, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung ordered ministries to focus all resources on quickly restoring government systems and minimizing public inconvenience after the fire.

At an emergency meeting, Lee expressed concern about the disruption and called for transparent communication to keep the public informed about the damage and recovery efforts.