SEOUL - SOUTH Koreans mourned the loss of a 600-year-old
building designated as the nation's top cultural landmark, which
collapsed in ruins early on Monday after catching fire.
Police said they are investigating whether arson sparked the
blaze at the Namdaemun gate in the heart of Seoul, one of the few
historic structures to have survived the 20th century Japanese
occupation and Korean War.
'People must feel hurt by the fire,' president-elect Lee
Myung-Bak, a former city mayor, said after touring the site. 'This
is a symbolic place that people want to visit whenever they come to
Seoul.'
Cheon Ho-Seon, spokesman for current President Roh Moo-Hyun,
expressed grief at the 'indescribably regrettable' blaze.
'It was our heritage, more significant and more symbolic than
any other cultural asset,' he said.
Ordinary Koreans inspecting the sooty and charred debris also
expressed grief.
<!-- show media links starting at 7th para --> 'It is
heartbreaking,' said Kim Duk-Il, 40, a visitor from the southern
city of Daegu, wiping away tears. 'The gate had endured 600 years,'
he told AFP. 'It remained OK even during the Korean War. I still
cannot believe this. Our pride has fallen down.'
The ornate two-storey building on a stone base, the city's
oldest wooden structure, caught fire on Sunday evening. Scores of
firefighters battling the blaze believed it was under control late
on Sunday but it flared up again.
Yonhap news agency said a taxi driver who reported the fire told
investigators he saw a man in his 50s climb the stairs to the gate
shortly before the blaze started.
A police forensic team was on Monday sifting through debris at
the site, which was surrounded by scaffolding and a screen.
'Police have not drawn a conclusion yet - whether there was a
short-circuit, arson or an accidental fire,' Kim Yong-Su, captain
of the Namdaemun police station, told reporters.
'Police are still investigating this with all possibilities in
mind.'
He said three witnesses reported a suspected arsonist but they
were giving 'confusing' testimony.
The gate, a major tourist attraction, was originally constructed
in 1398. It was rebuilt in 1447 and has since been frequently
renovated. Some pillars dated back to the original structure, a
rarity in Seoul.
Japanese colonialists razed several historic buildings during
their harsh 1910-45 rule and much of the city was destroyed during
the 1950-53 Korean War.
'It's devastating: the pride of the nation has collapsed. It's
so bad this kind of thing happened on the first weekday of the
Lunar New Year,' Kim Cheol-su, 55, told Yonhap.
The agency quoted firefighters as saying the Cultural Heritage
Administration had asked them to tackle the blaze cautiously,
meaning they could not quickly break into the area where the blaze
started.
The landmark, surrounded by modern office buildings, is
officially named Sungnyemun or 'Gate of exalted ceremonies'.
It was the southern gate in the walls that surrounded Seoul
during the Chosun Dynasty of 1392-1910. It is adjacent to Namdaemun
market, a centuries-old market popular with locals and tourists
alike.
The Cultural Heritage Administration forecast a long and costly
restoration.
'Experts estimate that it will take two to three years to
rebuild its architecture and cost some 20 billion won (S$29.8
million),' Shim Dong-Jun of the historic architecture division told
AFP.
'It's like losing a family member,' said Kim Jae-Bun, who has
run a drug store nearby for 30 years. 'I never imagined it would
burn down so helplessly.' -- AFP
