At least 150 dead in stampede during Halloween party in Seoul

Asia-Pacific, News October 30, 2022 , by IRIA No Comments

At least 150 people, mostly teenagers and young adults, were killed, while more than 160 people were severely injured as an overcrowded Halloween party turned into a stampede in the South Korean capital Seoul.

According to Seoul emergency response officials, the incident took place at a crowded venue that was hosting a Halloween party in the city’s downtown nightlife area of Itaewon. Nineteen of the injured have been reported in critical condition and the death toll is expected to rise.

It was the first event of its kind since the COVID-19 restrictions of social distancing were lifted in the city. An unprecedented amount of people showed up to the event wearing masks and Halloween costumes. Some eyewitnesses and victims described that the event was becoming more and more agitating and overly crowded. The unfortunate incident took place around 10:20 P.M. local time.

Head of the Yongsan Fire Station in Seoul’s Itaewon district, Choi Sung-beom spoke with the local reporters and said that “A number of people fell during a Halloween festival, and we have a large number of casualties”. The deceased include 97 females and 54 males, Choi said.

According to Choi, Among the dead include 19 foreigners, including those from China, Norway, Iran, and Uzbekistan.

Social media footage and photos show that people were packed in the narrow streets and alleyways of the nightlife district. This made it harder for the ambulances and other emergency response vehicles to reach the area of the incident.

Other footage and photos showed chaotic scenes on the streets with fire officials and citizens treating dozens of people who appeared to be unconscious. Most of the victims suffered cardiac arrest after being crushed.

^{Partygoers walk by ambulances at the scene where dozens of people were injured in a stampede during a Halloween festival in Seoul, South Korea, on October 30, 2022. (Image Credit: Reuters/Kim Hong-ji)}

An unidentified witness wrote on Twitter, “People kept pushing down into a downhill club alley, resulting in other people screaming and falling down like dominos. I thought I would be crushed to death too as people kept pushing without realizing there were people falling down at the start of the stampede.”

Itaewon is a popular nightlife district for young South Koreans and expatriates. It has dozens of bars, restaurants, and nightclubs that are usually packed on weekends. The business had suffered a serious decline since the COVID-19 pandemic social distancing restrictions.

A local media outlet claimed that around 100,000 people flocked to Itaewon streets for the Halloween festivities, one of the biggest gatherings since the Covid-19 restriction have been eased in the country.

The recent disaster was one of the deadliest since 2014 when the sinking of a ferry named Sewol resulted in the death of at least 304 people, mostly high school students. The recent incident has sent a shockwave of criticism to the South Korean government and especially to Seoul’s administration for its poor safety measures. After the incident, it is expected that the city administration would bring a major overhaul to the post-pandemic safety protocols in the coming week.

*^{The body of a victim is transported out of the district of Itaewon in South Korea’s capital city of Seoul. (Image Credit: Anthony Wallace/AFP)}*

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol also took notice of the incident and called for an emergency meeting along with the senior officials. The meeting established a task force to provide help with rescue operations. He also demanded to secure resources to treat the injured and to launch a thorough investigation into the cause of the disaster.