A passenger car blocks in front of the 119 Safety Center. /Courtesy of Gimpo Fire Department

A driver in his 40s was referred to the prosecution for leaving his car in front of the 119 Safety Center for over 3 hours while driving under the influence.

The Gimpo Police Department in Gyeonggi Province announced on the 16th that it had sent a man in his 40s, identified as A, to the prosecution for driving under the influence, a non-arrest case. A is accused of illegally parking his vehicle in front of the Yangchon 119 Safety Center in Gimpo City at around 11:13 p.m. on the 7th of last month after consuming alcohol.

A's vehicle was left in front of the 119 Safety Center for 3 hours and 39 minutes until it was towed the next day. As a result, two emergency ambulance and fire dispatches by the fire authorities were reportedly delayed.

During a police investigation, A reportedly stated, "I have debt and I had a past dispute over vehicle noise, and I got scared when someone was chasing me, so I left the vehicle behind." A's blood alcohol concentration at the time of the drunk driving was found to be above 0.08%, which is a license revocation level. This figure was derived using the Widmark formula, which retroactively estimates blood alcohol concentration over time, taking into account the alcohol content of the consumed drinks, the amount of alcohol, weight, gender, and so on.

Previously, the fire authorities imposed a fine of 1 million won on A for violating the Fire Services Act. According to the current Fire Services Act, fines of up to 5 million won may be imposed if there is an obstacle to the dispatch of fire vehicles.

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