At least 120 dead, dozens more injured after crowd surge at Halloween festivities in Seoul

SEOUL, South Korea — No less than 120 individuals had been killed and 100 extra had been injured as they had been crushed by a big crowd pushing ahead on a slender road throughout Halloween festivities within the capital of Seoul, South Korean officers stated.

Choi Seong-beom, chief of Seoul’s Yongsan hearth division, stated the loss of life toll might rise and that an unspecified quantity among the many injured had been in important situations following the stampede within the leisure district of Itaewon Saturday evening.

He stated 74 of the useless have been despatched to hospitals whereas the our bodies of the remaining 46 who had been saved on the streets had been being transported to a close-by health club in order that employees might establish them.

Officers say individuals had been crushed to loss of life after a big crowd started pushing ahead in a slender alley close to Hamilton Lodge, a serious occasion spot in Seoul.

Greater than 800 emergency employees and law enforcement officials from across the nation, together with all accessible personnel in Seoul, had been deployed to the streets to deal with the injured.

The Nationwide Fireplace Company individually stated in a press release that officers had been nonetheless making an attempt to find out the precise variety of emergency sufferers.

TV footage and pictures confirmed ambulance autos lined up in streets amid a heavy police presence and emergency employees transferring the injured in stretchers. Emergency employees and pedestrians had been additionally seen performing CPR on individuals mendacity within the streets.

In a single part, paramedics had been seen checking the standing of a dozen or extra individuals who lied immobile beneath blue blankets.

Police, which had been limiting site visitors in close by areas to hurry up the transportation of the injured to hospitals throughout town, additionally confirmed that dozens of individuals had been being given CPR on Itaewon streets. The Seoul Metropolitan Authorities issued emergency textual content messages urging individuals within the space to swiftly return residence.

Some native media stories earlier stated the crush occurred after a lot of individuals rushed to an Itaewon bar after listening to an unidentified superstar visited there.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol issued a press release calling for officers to make sure swift therapy for these injured and overview the security of the festivity websites. He additionally instructed the Well being Ministry to swiftly deploy catastrophe medical help groups and safe beds in close by hospital to deal with the injured.

Native media stated round 100,000 individuals flocked to Itaewon streets for the Halloween festivities, which had been the largest for the reason that begin of the pandemic following the easing of COVID-19 restrictions in latest months.