Foreigners who evacuated from forest fires carrying elderly people could be granted long-term residence visas in South Korea

The Ministry of Justice is considering granting long-term residency in South Korea to a foreign sailor who rescued dozens of residents in a village in Yeongdeok County, North Gyeongsang Province, when the wildfire in Uiseong began.
On the 1st, the Ministry of Justice (Acting Minister Kim Seok-woo) announced that Indonesian seafarer Sugianto (31) will be granted long-term stay (F-2) status in consideration of his contributions to saving many lives.
According to the Enforcement Decree of the Immigration Control Act, long-term stay (F-2) status is granted to those who are recognized by the Minister of Justice as having made special contributions to the Republic of Korea or contributed to the promotion of the public interest.
The forest fire that broke out in Uiseong County, North Gyeongsang Province on the 31st of last month hit a coastal village in Yeongdeok County on the afternoon of the 25th due to strong winds.
At around 11 p.m. on the day of the fire, the forest fire spread rapidly, said Yu Mi, head of the village's fishing village association.
Jung-sin and Sugianto (31) began evacuating residents. The two ran from house to house, telling them about the fire, giving priority to disabled residents and evacuating them to safety.
"Grandmother, the mountain is on fire. Please evacuate quickly," Sugianto shouted, waking up the sleeping residents.
The village's houses are clustered on a slope along the coast, making it difficult for elderly people to evacuate quickly.
However, Mr. Yu and Mr. Sugianto carried the residents on their backs and ran to the breakwater in front of the village, about 300 meters away, without looking back, to evacuate them.
Sugianto said, "I don't remember how long I ran around with the president (Yoo). I was woken up by the voices of old ladies telling me to hurry up.
"I was walking down the hill with my backpack on, and I was scared when I saw the flames spreading to the shop right in front of me," he said. A village resident in his 90s said, "If it weren't for Sugianto, we would all be dead.
"I could have died," he said. "I fell asleep while watching TV, but woke up when I heard someone screaming that there was a fire outside. When I looked outside, I saw Sugianto. He carried me on his back and carried me out of the house.
"I was able to escape," he said. Sugianto, who entered the country eight years ago on a work visa and works as a sailor, said he has a wife and a five-year-old son in his native Indonesia. He said he was working with villagers and South Koreans.
"I love Korea, especially the people in my village, who are like family to me," said Sugianto. "I have to go back to Korea in three years. My wife back home says she's proud of me."
"I received a phone call saying, 'We've been able to get out of here.' I feel a sense of accomplishment that no one was injured in the forest fire," he said. The village has about 80 households with about 60 residents.
The villagers expressed their gratitude, saying, "Without Sugianto and the fishing village council president, we would have been in such a terrible situation."
"I am honored to work with such wonderful, trustworthy young people and look forward to continuing to live and work with them."