A fire at an SK Hynix chip plant in Cheongju, South Korea triggered a hydrofluoric acid leak, leading to the emergency evacuation of thousands of employees and raising concerns over potential disruptions to production operations.

The incident occurred at 10:32 AM local time on June 1 in a gas room on the sixth floor of a connector area between the M15 and M15X factories in Cheongju's fourth industrial complex. The fire was quickly brought under control after the sprinkler system activated, but a leak of hydrofluoric acid gas occurred during the incident, resulting in injuries to six individuals who were transported to the company hospital for treatment.

Fire authorities confirmed six people were injured in the accident and have been transferred to the company hospital. The fire department stated that the investigation is ongoing and the casualty count could be revised upward.

Following the gas leak, SK Hynix immediately initiated emergency procedures, evacuating all approximately 3,600 employees from the M15 and M15X factories. A company spokesperson stated, "We have completed the full evacuation immediately, and the fire has been extinguished. We will cooperate with relevant authorities in investigating the cause and will file the necessary reports with the regulatory agencies." The spokesperson further added that equipment operations showed no abnormalities, production was not interrupted, and employees would return to work after safety checks were completed.

The M15 and M15X factories in Cheongju's fourth industrial complex are core chip manufacturing facilities for SK Hynix. The hydrofluoric acid involved in this incident is a hazardous chemical commonly used in semiconductor manufacturing processes. The SK Hynix spokesperson has not yet responded to further media inquiries, and the specific cause of the accident awaits the conclusion of investigations by fire and relevant regulatory authorities.