Many teenagers among 153 dead in Seoul Halloween crowd crush

Jump to contentSign up to our newslettersSubscribeNewsSportsVoicesCultureLifestyleTravelPremiumAsiaEast Asia Stuti MishraSunday 30 October 2022 10:39CommentsCloseSeoul stampede: Densely packed crowd surges in Halloween party eventAt least 153 people, mostly teenagers, have died in a stampede as huge Halloween crowds surged into a narrow street in South Korea’s capital, Seoul, in what has become the country’s worst disaster in years. Emergency workers and pedestrians desperately performed CPR on people lying in the streets after the crush in the capital’s nightlife district of Itaewon overnight.At least 82 people are believed to be injured and were rushed to the hospital. Officials fear the death toll could rise further. Those killed or hurt were mostly teens and people in their twenties, according to Choi Seong-beom, chief of Seoul’s Yongsan fire department. The dead included 19 foreigners, he said, whose nationalities weren’t immediately released.South Korean president Yoon Suk-Yeol has declared a national mourning period today as reactions of shock and condolences pour in from the rest of the world. An estimated 100,000 people had gathered in Itaewon for the country’s biggest outdoor Halloween festivities since the pandemic began and strict rules on gatherings were enforced.1667125800Seoul Metropolitan Police say they have confirmed the identity of almost all the victims of the overnight stampede as the death toll now climbs up to 153.The death toll from the disaster stands at 153 with the identities of 150 victims now confirmed, the police told CNN.The three bodies who have yet to be identified are all young women whose nationalities have yet to be verified, they added.The city has also received around 4,000 missing complaints with dozens of people still in the hospital. However, it isn’t clear how many of the missing complaints relate to the incident.South Korean national flags fly at half-mast at the government complex in Seoul, South KoreaStuti Mishra30 October 2022 10:301667124000Chinese president Xi Jinping has expressed his condolences for the victims of the deadly stampede in Seoul, which killed four Chinese citizens among 151 people.’On behalf of the Chinese government and people, I would like to express deep condolences to the victims and extend sincere condolences to their families and the injured,’ president Xi Jinping said in a letter, according to Xinhua.Mr Xi said the accident also led to other Chinese citizens being injured, and hoped South Korea ‘will make every effort to cure and deal with the aftermath.’Stuti Mishra30 October 2022 10:001667122200At least four Chinese nationals were among those killed in the stampede in Seoul, the Xinhua news agency reported, citing the Chinese embassy in South Korea.In total at least 22 foreign nationals from 12 countries are among the victims of the worst stampede incident the country has ever seen, with police still trying to identify some victims.Those killed in yesterday night’s disaster include people from China, Iran, Russia, the United States, Australia, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Kazakhstan, Austria, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Norway, authorities said.Stuti Mishra30 October 2022 09:301667120400Most of the victims of the deadly stampede in Soul have now been identified with the process taking longer for foreign nationals, according to South Korea’s interior minister.Minister Lee Sang-min told a briefing at local time midday today that about 90 per cent of the victims had been identified and authorities were still working on identifying the remaining 10 per cent.He noted that it takes more time for foreign nationals or teens who have yet to be registered with the government, in which cases they have to directly check with the families.Stuti Mishra30 October 2022 09:001667118600South Korea is mourning the deaths of at least 151 people, mostly in their teens and 20s, who got trapped and crushed after a huge Halloween party crowd surged into a narrow alley in a nightlife district in Seoul.President Yoon Suk Yeol had already declared a national mourning period today and ordered flags at government buildings and public offices to fly at half-mast.The Seoul Metropolitan Government has now said a public memorial will also be set up for the victims and families in mourning.The date or time for the memorial has not been announced yet.Stuti Mishra30 October 2022 08:301667116800The government in South Korea has received at least 3,580 missing person reports this morning, following the Halloween stampede in Seoul that left at least 151 dead.According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, authorities have set up a situation room for the incident at a nearby community centre to deal with the calls as frantic families struggled to enquire about the missing people.Bureaucrats who typically handle birth certificates or housing registrations sought to help hundreds of distraught people seeking details of their relatives.Officers at the centre manned emergency phone lines, taking hundreds of frantic calls to find missing people.Stuti Mishra30 October 2022 08:001667115000It happened at a music festival in Houston, a soccer stadium in England, during a hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, in a Chicago nightclub, and countless other gatherings: Large crowds surge toward exits, onto playing fields or press up against a stage with such force that people are literally squeezed to death.And it has happened again, during Halloween festivities in the South Korean capital Seoul, where a crowd pushed forward, the narrow street they were on acting as a vice, leaving more than 140 people dead and 150 more injured.Here is a look at why stampedes happen:The crowd surge that left dozens dead at Halloween festivities in South Korea’s capital city of Seoul is the latest example of a deadly story that has been told around the world: People in a large crowd find themselves squeezed into a space so tight it is impossible to breatheStuti Mishra30 October 2022 07:301667112300At least 151 people were killed and 80 more were injured as they were crushed by a large crowd pushing forward on a narrow street during Halloween festivities in the capital of Seoul, South Korea.Here a look at some of the major crowd disasters around the world in recent decades:At least 120 people were killed and 100 more were injured when they were crushed by a large crowd pushing forward on a narrow street during Halloween festivities in the capital of Seoul, South KoreaStuti Mishra30 October 2022 06:451667109990Bodies lined up outside on the road, emergency workers and pedestrians struggling to give CPR and people toppling one another ‘like dominos’, the scenes of the stampede and its aftermath have left everyone in shock.One survivor, surnamed Kim, said they were trapped for about an hour and a half before being rescued, as some people shouted ‘Help me!’ and others were short of breath, according to the Seoul-based Hankyoreh newspaper.One survivor said many people fell and toppled one another ‘like dominos’ after they were pushed by others.Another survivor, Lee Chang-kyu, said he saw about five to six men push others before one or two began falling, according to the newspaper.In an interview with the news channel YTN, Hwang Min-hyeok, a visitor to Itaewon, said it was shocking to see rows of bodies near the hotel.He said emergency workers were initially overwhelmed, leaving pedestrians struggling to administer CPR to the injured lying on the streets. People wailed beside the bodies of their friends, he said.Another survivor in his 20s said he avoided being trampled by managing to get into a bar whose door was open in the alley, Yonhap news agency reported.A woman in her 20s surnamed Park told Yonhap that she and others were standing along the side of the alley while others caught in the middle of the alley had no escape.Stuti Mishra30 October 2022 06:061667106868Rescue workers carry a victim on the street near the scene in SeoulRescue workers carry a victim on the street near the scene in SeoulThe body of a victim of a Halloween crush is transported on a stretcher in the district of Itaewon in SeoulRescue workers, firefighters and police officers are seen on the street Stuti Mishra30 October 2022 05:14Registration is a free and easy way to support our truly independent journalismBy registering, you will also enjoy limited access to Premium articles, exclusive newsletters, commenting, and virtual events with our leading journalistsAlready have an account? sign inRegistration is a free and easy way to support our truly independent journalismBy registering, you will also enjoy limited access to Premium articles, exclusive newsletters, commenting, and virtual events with our leading journalistsAlready have an account? sign inSeoulSouth KoreaHalloweenYoon Suk-yeolEmergency services treat injured people Getty ImagesPlease refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in