Around 50 people suffered cardiac arrest in South Korea after a Halloween party turned into a stampede. Several died during the incident which took place on a narrow street in Seoul, South Korea on Saturday.
An estimated 100,000 people had gathered in Itaewon for the country’s biggest outdoor Halloween festivities since the COVID pandemic began.
According to a report by Mint, Choi Cheon-sik, an official from the National Fire Agency, told AP that around 100 people were found injured during the crowd surge Saturday night. The severe stampede left many lying on road and dealing with cardiac arrest as of early Sunday.
Over 800 emergency workers and police officers from across the country have been deployed to the capital to help treat those who were injured.
The official informed that the situation went out of control when a large crowd began pushing forward in a narrow valley near Hamilton Hotel in Seoul and crushed many people to death. After receiving word of the incident that was expected to cause huge casualties, more than 400 emergency workers across South Korea and all those available in the capital were deployed on the streets to treat the injured. In the videos of the incident, many first responders can be seen performing CPR on people lying scattered in the street.
While the cause of the stampede still isn’t known, a local media report claimed it all began when a large number of people began moving towards Itaewon bar after finding out about the visit of an unidentified celebrity.
At least 151 people were killed fire department officials reported, with world leaders expressing their condolences to the victims and an additional 82 people were injured during the incident, according to a report by DW.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol called for those who were injured to be quickly treated and also urged officials to carry out a thorough investigation into the tragedy as well as review the safety protocols for other large cultural and entertainment events. Yoon also declared a period of national mourning on Sunday for those who lost their lives.