At least 151 people were killed in a stampede on Saturday night in a popular Halloween area in the South Korean capital, Seoul.
Another 82 people were injured in the crash in Seoul’s Itaewon district, officials said. The area was buzzing with people ahead of the Halloween holiday on Monday.
It was the deadliest mass stampede in South Korean history. The majority of the victims were young adults in their teens and twenties, officials said.
It is not clear what sparked the stampede, which first started in a narrow alley lined with nightclubs.
Located in the heart of Seoul, the Le Taewon area is full of nightclubs and bars and is popular with expats and locals alike.
The area is full of parties celebrating Halloween, which usually attracts the biggest and most active crowd of the Itaewon year. This year was especially crowded because it was the first Halloween since the COVID-19 pandemic lifted social distancing restrictions. The local media estimated that around 100,000 people gathered here on Saturday night to celebrate Halloween.
A video posted online showed people at Halloween celebrations scrambling into a narrow passageway and moving forward slowly. In the end, hundreds of people were trapped inside.
As the stampede scene was slowly cleared, many bystanders, still dressed in Halloween costumes, attempted to perform CPR on the injured. It didn’t take long for dozens of corpses to lie in the streets, however, at the same time as loud music was blasted from a nearby nightclub full of revelers, the people inside seemed oblivious. from the chaos outside.
An unnamed witness who attended the party told VOA that in the initial confusion, she thought the people on the ground were either drunk or in a coma, but later discovered they were injured or has died. The person who attended the celebrations did not give his name due to the sensitivity of the situation.
Hours after the accident, thousands continued to enjoy themselves at the Itaewon nightclub, even as nearby emergency workers rushed bodies to wait in ambulances.
Crowds were also waiting outside, mostly in Halloween costumes – and many revelers were still stunned, some laughing and some crying, trying to figure out what was going on.
Officials said 19 foreigners were among the dead, including citizens from China, Uzbekistan, Norway and Iran. They said it was difficult to identify the bodies, in part because many were wearing Halloween costumes and many did not carry ID.
As the sun rose in Seoul, many Itaewons remained in a warning zone, with officials investigating and clearing debris.
Some personal items could still be seen on the ground near the lane where the stampede took place, including a white shoe on the pavement.
The police had received about 355 disappearance reports early Sunday morning, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Government.
A young woman told VOA that she rushed to the scene to find her sister who had been in the area. She said she later found her sister’s name on the list of the deceased and searched the pavement for her personal belongings.
South Korean President Yoon Seok-won’s office is near Itaewon. Yin Xiyue declared a period of national mourning for the stampede accident. The first task, he said, is to determine the cause of the stampede so that similar incidents can be avoided in the future.
The White House released a statement from US President Joe Biden on Saturday, saying: “Jill and I express our deepest condolences to the families who lost a loved one in Seoul. We mourn with the people of South Korea and extend our best wishes to everyone. who were injured. , I hope they get better as soon as possible.”
US Secretary of State Blinken also tweeted: “We are very saddened to hear about the deadly stampede in Seoul today. Our condolences go out to the families and friends of the dead and wounded, and to the people of South Korea who are mourning this terrible tragedy. . Deepest thoughts and condolences.”
