Hyundai Steel completed a seismic retrofit for a school free of charge Tuesday in an increasingly earthquake-prone zone in North Gyeongsang Province, South Korea.

The Incheon-headquartered steelmaker, the second largest in the nation by sales, reached out to Naenam Elementary School in the historic city of Gyeongju to furnish the school facilities with quake-resistant steel bars. The monthlong reconstruction during summer vacation came after eight months of preparation.

Fears of earthquakes in Korea have risen since 2016, when a magnitude 4.5 earthquake hit Gyeongju in September and aftershocks followed. Naenam Elementary School, built in 1977, was identified as the epicenter of the record quake, raising the need for its facilities to be reinforced.

The quake had left artifacts in the city damaged and gave it a disaster zone status.

Hyundai Steel has developed quake-resistant steel beams since 2005 and began sales in 2013, both for the first time in a nation long considered quake-free.

By Son Ji-hyoung (consnow@heraldcorp.com)