Chemistry - Chapter 95

13. Wildfire(4)

Could this be called a fateful reunion?

Go Eun-sil couldn’t believe that a rescue team, including her elementary school classmate, had come up through the sea of fire.

Just a minute ago, they were in despair.

Risking their lives to descend, they found their phones continually out of service in the darkness. They had to rely on the sky to guide them through the spreading flames towards the evacuation center.

“Jeong-woo, are you a firefighter? According to Soo-chan…”

“Eun-sil.”

“Yeah?”

“Let’s talk in detail after safely getting down. Anyway, it’s good to see you.”

“Oh? Uh, yeah, same here.”

Jeong-woo’s gaze towards the mountain was exceptionally serious.

This incredible coincidence didn’t seem to be heading towards a happy ending just yet.

“Gather around! We’ll distribute fire protection equipment.”

At the call of one team member, Go Eun-sil glanced at Jeong-woo’s back and, like others, moved behind.

“It will protect you from smoke and heat.”

Amidst the team members distributing special vinyl masks covering the entire head and firefighting blankets made of fiberglass, an older-looking man stepped forward.

“I’m Rescue Team Leader Kim Jae-ho. Answer while wearing it. We need to identify you and report to the command center. Why did you come here, of all places?”

“We were here to manage endangered animals and plants in this area. One of us is a journalist who came to cover our work.”

The director of the National Park Management Agency’s Ecological Restoration Department and two employees, a veterinarian from the Animal Protection Association, and one social affairs reporter.

After confirming their identities, Kim Jae-ho picked up the radio.

“Command Center. Command Center. This is Rescue Team 1. We’ve secured a total of 5 isolated individuals at the evacuation center. Currently preparing to descend.”

Squeak.

-Any injured individuals?

“No. The list of rescued individuals is…”

Kim Jae-ho, who quickly reported, was approached by Director Nam Jeong-yeol.

“There’s a mountain rescue team on the southwest side of this location, on Mount Seoraksan. If you talk to them they’ll support us with a helicopter. We have an agreement with the National Park Management Agency.”

“We also arrived by helicopter initially. If it were accessible, we wouldn’t have climbed through these flames.”

Kim Jae-ho opened his mouth to those who seemed not to fully comprehend the seriousness of the situation.

“Let me briefly explain the situation in this area.”

The following explanation from the rescue team leader was increasingly grave.

This area was declared a disaster zone due to a wildfire, and it was the most dangerous place. If they didn’t evacuate as soon as possible, there was a high risk of losing their lives due to flames and toxic gases. On top of that, the advancing fire line was expected to forcefully break through, posing an even greater danger.

The five isolated at the evacuation center were both dumbfounded and at a loss for words.

“Why did this happen…”

Director Nam stared at the flaming forest with a disheartened expression.

A man in his mid-thirties, who had been holding a camera like a lifeline, asked Kim Jae-ho with a bewildered expression.

“Jumping into a pit of fire, are you in your right mind? Is that something a 119 firefighter would say?”

Despite the challenging attitude of the man questioning him, Kim Jae-ho’s expression remained unshaken.

“You said you’re a journalist, right?”

“I’m Seong Ra-il from Dongmyeong Ilbo.”

“There’s a question journalists always ask at the scene. Was that rescue the best option?”

Seong Ra-il, trembling in fear, and others in a similar state, were carefully scrutinized by Kim Jae-ho. He calmly spoke.

“The best response from a firefighter at a disaster site threatening lives may not be the correct answer. However, who can determine the best response in such a situation? You, the journalist? Us? A third party who hasn’t experienced this situation?”

Seong Ra-il couldn’t answer Kim Jae-ho’s question.

“As someone who has experienced a scene like this a bit more, I’ll give you an advice. If you find a way with a high probability of survival, act without delay. It’s a hundred times better than just standing still. But if you don’t know the way…”

Kim Jae-ho’s gaze turned towards Jeong-woo, who was observing the area below.

“Find the person who seems to be the safest in this hell. Then follow them, whether it’s to live or die. My team and I came here that way, and that’s how we’ll survive in this place.”

Descending the steep cliff, Rescue Team 1 and the five rescuers confronted swirling flames with the force to uproot trees.

A dead-end alley.

Throughout their descent from the peak, they had faced the flames, making it inevitable to feel despair, but it was especially intense here. In the smoke-filled surroundings, the only visible light amid the haze was the crimson flames.

Finding a way in such a place was practically impossible. However, people, clinging to a glimmer of hope, focused their attention on one person.

“We have to jump over there.”

Everyone was startled at the sound.

Kim Jae-ho, who was standing beside Jeong-woo, said.

“It seems much more intense here than elsewhere. If we have to go through, whether it’s firefighting equipment or team members, we’ll lead the way. Kim Yi-hyun, Park Dong-myeong!”

“No. The eastern fire line has thickened. We should conserve our supplies as much as possible if we intend to break through.”

“But…”

“As the fire is concentrated here, the area right behind is relatively safe for a while.”

Even Kim Jae-ho, who had consistently trusted Jeong-woo, had a doubtful expression, given how threatening the flames were.

Jeong-woo observed the two currents beginning to intertwine and said.

“The timing will become apparent. The time to pass will be about 20 seconds. The distance is approximately 50 meters.”

Due to the dense smoke, people couldn’t know where they were or which direction was safe. They could only rely on Jeong-woo’s voice.

Jeong-woo, though already hoarse from shouting on the way, had no time to rest in order to boost the spirits of those who could only be pessimistic in this dreadful heat.

“Is there anyone here who can’t run 50 meters in 20 seconds? I’m sorry, but you have to run now. Run at full speed, go and collapse. I’m counting! Three, two…”

Shooooo.

All kinds of branches and nearby flames swirled in a whirlwind, soaring high into the sky. People’s eyes widened at the unexpected path that appeared.

“…One! Run!”

At Jeong-woo’s shout, a team member with a rake ran ahead, dodging the smoke. The rescuers followed, using the path he secured.

Jeong-woo, who was running at the back, calculated the reaction time while watching the space where the flames disappeared as oxygen was rapidly sucked in.

‘It won’t be 20 seconds. 15 seconds, no, 10 seconds?’

In the midst of catching his breath, rotating his head was not a normal act.

Among those running behind him were Jeong Pil-du and Go Eun-sil. Jeong Pil-du, who had intentionally coordinated with her to protect him, wasn’t a problem.

“Eun-sil. Faster!”

“I’m going.”

“When you were young, you used to outrun the kids without hesitation.”

“Why bring up the past now? Just because I grew a bit taller, are you getting jealous?”

“No, it’s because in 5 seconds, this place will become a sea of flames.”

Eun-sil’s eyes widened. Jeong-woo pushed her back, increasing the speed as much as possible.

“When you pass through this smoke, you’ll see a big tree. Hide right behind it.”

The first team member to arrive took a position behind a tree that hadn’t caught fire yet.

“Over here!”

As individuals arrived one by one, while staying close to the team member, a whirlwind of flames suddenly appeared in that spot with the strong wind.

Whooosh!

Flames, rising high, covered Jeong-woo’s back. The hot air swept over the latest flame-resistant outerwear that was supposed to be special equipment.

“Run, run!”

Jeong Pil-du, who had arrived a step ahead, grabbed Go Eun-sil’s arm and pulled her alongside a tree. Jeong-woo also barely threw himself behind the tree.

As soon as they escaped from the flames behind, Jeong-woo pointed upwards and shouted.

“Watch out for embers! These are also significant!”

Escaping from the flames behind, a storm of fire at the back, and a shower of fire above.

Crouching down and trembling, Go Eun-sil felt Jeong-woo covering her back with one side of his coat and asked.

“Are you okay, Jeong-woo?”

“Even though the fire looks scary, the combustion reaction is straightforward. Fuel, oxygen, wind. If any of the three is weak, the flames quickly die out.”

While lying flat on the ground, Seong Ra-il felt his heart calm down as he listened to the voice of someone who was analyzing the situation more calmly than anyone else.

In this moment of chaos, when he thought death was closest, the young man’s actions of sharing a coat with others brought something captivating to his gaze.

Perhaps it was the journalist’s instinct.

Reflexively feeling his chest to open the camera’s rapid-fire case, Seong Ra-il continued to capture the image of the young man.

The falling embers stopped.

“Let’s go now! We’ve overcome the danger. Moving to the east!”

《Interview: Son Dong-joo》

“When the rescue team appeared through the flames, I thought I might have seen it wrong, or rather, I thought it was a dream.”

-According to the team leader, you were fortunately discovered during helicopter reconnaissance.

“Luck? I’m not sure if that was luck. Even if we don’t know, we probably wouldn’t have been able to save you. I have a question. How did you manage to escape from there? Weren’t you in the midst of it as well?”

-This is an interview with the professor.

“Don’t beat around the bush. Let’s hear it. All other articles are just speculative. You’re the only one who knows the details. Well, is it because it’s a special report that you can’t tell me?”

-That’s not it. I just don’t know how to express it yet. Walking through the flames relying only on one person’s voice, the experience at that time…

“Are you talking about the chemist?”

-Yes. Since that experience became the reason for deciding on this coverage.

「11:30 PM – The Best Answer from a Chemist」

Outside the command center, beyond the control line, broadcast vehicles from various media outlets were lined up.

“After more than 5 hours since the incident, here, over a hundred firefighters from Seoul and Gyeonggi regions, along with around ten helicopters supported by the fire authorities, are in full preparation for deployment. Even from this location, which is 5 km away from where the wildfire is raging, the smell of burning is so intense that it feels like it’s vibrating…”

“Experts from the Korea Forest Service have stated that due to the rapid spread of the fire in steep slopes and ravines, initial firefighting efforts have failed. It is predicted that damage to the forest area will range from 20 to a maximum of 50 hectares…”

Amidst the ongoing emergency broadcasts from each broadcasting station, someone during coverage suddenly stopped filming, boarded the reporting vehicle, and disappeared.

“What’s happening? Where is JBN going?”

“They said the results of the emergency meeting will be announced soon, is there anywhere more important than here?”

While journalists were discussing, a call came to one of them.

“Yes, chief. I heard that Central Fire and Rescue Team 1 has been dispatched to rescue five people isolated at the wildfire site. Their status is unknown?”

A text message arrived for another journalist.

[En route for collaboration with the Korea Forest Service rescue team. Heading to the east of Hwango Peak.]

News from various sources began to circulate, each receiving information from their respective contacts.

The situation was uncertain, with the possibility of rescuers or group members emerging.

Larger broadcasting stations divided their reporting teams, while smaller ones hesitated.

It was hard to tell how much time had passed as they walked through the indistinguishable smoke.

Go Eun-sil mindlessly followed the person in front of her. Tears welled up in her eyes due to the persistent smoke slipping through the gaps in her mask. She walked through the ankle-deep flames without feeling the anxiety that it would now be hotter.

“Wait.”

Jeong-woo grabbed her arm as she stumbled.

Go Eun-sil, who was about to step on a branch covered in flames, paused as she realized her actions.

“Ah, sorry.”

“You seem to have inhaled too much smoke. Just a moment.”

With a crackling sound, something sparkled in the field of vision and then disappeared. As the smoke that had filled the front of the mask disappeared, the tears also stopped to some extent.

“Ah…”

The rescue team leader who had been walking ahead approached Jeong-woo and handed him a walkie-talkie.

“Mr. Jeong-woo. It’s Captain Ma.”

Crackle.

-Han Jeong-woo. What’s this about changing the combustion line?

Go Eun-sil, feeling a bit clearer-headed, fixed her gaze on Jeong-woo, who was on the walkie-talkie.

-The ignition point increased by 1.5 times? In just an hour?

“The wind is too severe, more than anything. Even the thin east side has flames in three places now. I’ve seen the fire flying over to the mountain beyond the blockade several times.”

-Got it. We’ll send a car. Come straight to the situation room as soon as you reach the safety zone.

It was a conversation that seemed important and serious. Jeong-woo’s expression was dark. When she continued to stare at him, Jeong-woo turned his head, smiled calmly, and looked away.

“We’re okay. We can get out in a little while.”

“How do you know the way so well?”

“If you think about it, it’s chemistry. It’s hard to explain.”

At this answer, Go Eun-sil remembered the text message sent by her old friend Park Soo-chan a while ago.

[Our Jeong-woo? Doing great. He became a researcher at a major company. KG Chemicals.]

He clearly said he was a researcher. Thinking about it from her childhood perspective, it didn’t seem like a fitting profession, but now that she faced Han Jung-woo, he was more than just an expert.

“It’s really you, Jeong-woo?”

“Why? Doesn’t seem like it?”

The kind and considerate old image of him, who extended his hand first to her when she transferred to a new school with no friends, overlapped throughout the encounter.

“No, it doesn’t matter.”

“What are you talking about? Oh? Watch your head.”

Amidst occasional falling embers, the group continued to walk without rest.

About five minutes passed.

At that time, in the smoke, where only the sounds of each other’s labored breathing could be heard, somewhere, a high-toned animal cry, sounding like a whimper, echoed.

Go Eun-sil perked up her ears and looked around.

“Director Nam, is this, by any chance…”

“Yeah, it’s the cry of a marten.”

Endangered wildlife, grade 2. One of the species they had been observing and researching on Hwango Peak.

Jeong-woo, who was walking ahead, stopped abruptly.

“There’s something over there. In our way.”

As they moved a bit forward, they saw a 30-centimeter marten writhing in the ash, unable to breathe.

Someone’s flashlight illuminated the marten. Nam Jeong-yeol, who was nearby, said.

“It’s not an adult. These little ones must have their mothers by their side. Probably due to this fire…”

“Oh, no.”

Jeong-woo clicked his tongue at the prospect of a dead parent. When Jeong-woo was about to approach the marten, who was unable to hold himself up due to weakness, Go Eun-sil quickly grabbed his arm.

“It may look gentle, but it’s a top predator.”

When the marten realized they were approaching, it went wild. The dying creature revealed a sharpness that made it look like it would bite anyone who approached.

Go Eun-sil, after carefully observing the marten’s whole body, said.

“It seems more like suffocation from the smoke than burns.”

Jeong-woo clicked his tongue.

“This damn wildfire is a disaster for them too.”

Kim Jae-ho, the team leader at the front, spoke to the people.

“There’s no time to waste. If we’re not going to catch it, let’s move.”

With the need to keep moving, there was no time to pay attention to the marten, which was showing its hostility.

As they continued to move, Jeong-woo looked at the marten as if it were nothing and reached his hand into the air.

“Phew, smoke, go away.”

“What are you.., doing?”

At Go Eun-sil’s question, Jeong-woo scratched his chin with a somewhat awkward expression.

“Just.”

Crackle.

Around the marten, white flashes gathered, completely different from the sparks. Crackling, the animal, which had been breathing heavily, soon stabilized its breath and calmed down.

A small creature suffered in the middle of the forest as the flames consumed it.

Through its jet-black pupils, the footprints of people moving away to the other side of the fire could be seen.

“Oh, Chief, are you out of your mind? Who on earth would come through this?”

In front of the scorched forest, 20 meters from the burning pit, Lee Heung-sik, a forestry officer from the county office, wore an expression of disbelief.

It was an order, yes, but with only twelve firefighters in the suppression team, there was a danger of being swept away, let alone trying to control the raging flames.

“Captain, the fire is likely to reach here soon. Shouldn’t we retreat? We’ve waited as much as an hour.”

“I’m seriously considering it too. Let me try the walkie-talkie.”

While calling the situation room and waiting, the walkie-talkie blinked.

Crackle.

-Fire suppression team on standby at the east fire ignition line, do you copy?

“What?”

Lee Heung-sik pressed the transmission button on the walkie-talkie with a surprised expression.

“Forest Service fire suppression team leader here. Who are you over there?”

-It’s Kim Jae-ho from the rescue team. We’re planning to break through the fire line soon. When you see the fire light, concentrate the firefighting equipment in that direction.

“You’re inside?”

As absurd as it sounded, there was no time to be dumbfounded. Lee Heung-sik ordered all members carrying backpack pumps to prepare for forward waiting.

“Where is it? Where?”

Observing the flames for about a minute, a point of fire suddenly surged like a flickering candle. Along with it, the light of flashlights began to twinkle.

“They’re here! Concentrate!”

A stream of water from the backpack pumps was directed toward a point.

On the opposite side, an air-compressed firefighting device shot out, creating a small path through the sea of flames.

“Shoot, shoot! Pour it in!”

After a while, about a dozen people walked out of the flames.

Crackle.

-Team leader, have you met them? Tell me. Is everyone safe? Please tell them that everyone is safe.

A transmission came from Chief Oh Seon-yong.

Lee Heung-sik looked at the survivors who emerged from the inferno with an expression of disbelief.

“Are you all out? How many in total? Report to the situation room.”

The firefighter wearing a ‘Beware of wildfires’ safety helmet, walking out from the far end, answered Lee Heung-sik’s question.

“Ah, there are eleven of us….”

While answering, something black suddenly shot out from under the firefighter’s feet and swiftly brushed past Lee Heung-sik’s side.

Startled, Lee Heung-sik jumped to the side.

The firefighter, surprised and confused, continued to speak.

“…and a marten.”