The launch of the nation’s Naro space rocket has been postponed hours before the scheduled liftoff at the Naro Space Center.

The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology announced that it was suspending the launch, which had been set for 5 p.m. Wednesday.

The ministry said it made the decision due to a malfunction in the fire extinguishing equipment on the launch pad. Fire extinguishing agents gushed out of one of the three nozzles installed at the launch pad to put out any fires or blazes resulting from the rocket’s launch.

The ministry said South Korean and Russian experts are trying to find out what caused the malfunction, adding that it would be difficult to push ahead with the rocket launch on Wednesday.

The Naro rocket management committee says the launch would be rescheduled for as early as Thursday if the fire extinguishing agents spilled onto the launch pad are found to be harmless.

The committee earlier said the launch would occur prior to June 20th in consideration of the possibility of delay.