Death by fan A popular belief in South Korea that a fan tu | Honest historian
Death by fan
A popular belief in South Korea that a fan turned on overnight in a closed room can be fatal.Since there were no reports of deaths from fans before the 1970s, it is believed that this belief was spread by the Korean government in order to save energy. There is a version that this action was launched in order to promote in the market of household services the air conditioners gaining popularity.
For example, in July 1997, the English-language Korean newspaper The Korea Herald reported that a week of hot weather had caused at least 10 deaths caused by fans. The expert concluded the article by recommending that to prevent such cases, one should keep windows open and not be close to a fan.
The Korea Consumer Protection Society reported in 2006 that fan accidents were among the top five most common summertime accidents in South Korea. It was also reported that from 2003 to 2005, there were 20 deaths from sleep asphyxiation associated with fans and air conditioners.
