A woman places a bouquet of flowers to honor the victims near the scene of the deadly mob tragedy in Seoul, South Korea.
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A woman places a bouquet of flowers to honor the victims near the scene of the deadly mob tragedy in Seoul, South Korea.
Ahn Young-joon/AP
In the hours since a devastating mob surge in the South Korean capital claimed the lives of more than 150 people, details have begun to emerge that highlight just how chaotic the scene was.
Authorities say that in addition to the dead, more than 130 others were injured, many of them young people in the Itaewon neighborhood of Seoul. The popular district in Seoul was hosting Halloween festivities that drew around 100,000 people when the crowd surge began. Many were trying to gather in a narrow alley lined with bars and restaurants, according to local media.
VIDEOS have appeared online showing the sheer mass of people crowded into at least one narrow street lined with bars and restaurants. Some people can be heard screaming and most seem completely unable to move.
A worker at an Itaewon club, located at the uphill end of the roughly 11-meter-wide alley leading to the district’s main road, recalled to reporters seeing the throng of revelers Saturday night.
“We could hear some people in the crowd saying, don’t push, but someone in the back said, hey, push! Push! And people started screaming, and the crowd poured into our club,” he said.
The man, who declined to give his name to reporters, said they normally wouldn’t allow minors in their club, but they opened their doors to try to save lives.
“But even after we did that, there were people collapsed at the entrance and some passed out,” he added. “We tried to save them, but our club was at the bottom of the wave and there were already three or four layers of people piled up, so we couldn’t.”
He said his inability to help people “continues to haunt me and hurt me”.
Others show the videos shared on social networks several people, some dressed in their Halloween costumes, attempting CPR on rows of unconscious victims on the sidewalks.
A police officer stands on patrol at the scene of a deadly rampage during a Halloween festival.
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A police officer stands on patrol at the scene of a deadly rampage during a Halloween festival.
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The survivors struggle to find their friends
Most of the dead had been identified by mid-morning Sunday. The task was simplified by the fact that Korean citizens over the age of 17 are required to submit their fingerprints to the authorities.
Koreans and foreign nationals missing friends and relatives came to a nearby community center to try to identify photographs of the victims.
Park Kang-hyun, 26, traveled to Seoul from the southeastern city of Gwangju in search of two missing friends. One lost her cell phone but survived, he said. The other remains missing.
The friend who survived said “there were just too many people. They didn’t even have a moment to feel scared. Everyone just fell down.”
He kept looking for his other friend, but city officials “just told me to wait. There’s nothing we can do right now.”
Nathan Taverniti, 24, was on holiday from Australia. He told reporters that he was in Itaewon with three friends.
Relatives of missing people cry at a community service center in Seoul, South Korea.
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Relatives of missing people cry at a community service center in Seoul, South Korea.
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“I was there all night. Some people fell in front of me and I lost a bunch of friends,” he said. “Somehow, I got out, but all three of my friends … two are in the hospital, and one has passed away,” he said, fighting back tears.
“There was no police. There was no one to help me,” he said. “It was just me and the other bystanders. And there was nothing I could do.”
After the crowd swelled, questions have begun to emerge as to whether more police should have been sent to the area to help control the large crowds. The Korean Herald reports that nearby emergency crews had difficulty reaching the scene and the hundreds of victims due to the crowds and increased traffic congestion.
Interior Minister Lee Sang-min has disputed the idea that more could have been done to prevent the tragedy, according to The Korean Herald. The newspaper quoted Lee as saying the crash did not appear to be “an incident that could have been prevented by deploying more police officers or firefighters.”
The Halloween event has been held before and according to local media reports there were no concerns that crowds would be a particular problem this year or any bigger than previous events.
Two Americans are among the dead
South Korean national flags fly at half-staff at the government complex in Seoul, South Korea, Sunday, Oct. 30, 2022.
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South Korean national flags fly at half-staff at the government complex in Seoul, South Korea, Sunday, Oct. 30, 2022.
Lee Jin-man/AP
At least two American citizens were among those killed in the deadly stampede, the US embassy in Seoul has confirmed.
“I am deeply saddened by the loss of so many lives last night, including two young Americans celebrating with their Korean friends and others from around the world,” US Ambassador to the Republic of Korea Philip said in a statement. Goldberg.
IN a statement on TwitterPresident Biden also offered his condolences.
“Jill and I are devastated to learn that at least two Americans are among the many who lost their lives in Seoul. Our hearts go out to their loved ones at this time of grief, and we continue to pray for the recovery of all those were injured”, said the president.
One of those individuals who died was University of Kentucky student Anne Gieske, the school announced Sunday. Gieske was a junior nursing student from Northern Kentucky who was studying in South Korea as part of an education abroad program.
Two other students and a faculty member, who are also in South Korea for the semester, were contacted and confirmed to be safe, the university said.
“We will be there for those in our community who knew and loved Anne. We also have nearly 80 students from South Korea in the UK – members of our community – who will need our support,” said Eli Capilouto, the president of the university in a statement. to the school community.
As of 21:00 local time on Sunday, officials say at least 26 foreign nationals were killed in the incident, according to local media reports.
The U.S. Embassy in Seoul is working with local authorities and providing consular assistance to any affected U.S. citizens, a spokesperson told NPR.
In response to the tragedy, South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo declared a period of national mourning that will last until midnight on November 5.
The government has declared Seoul’s Yongsan district, where Itaewon is located, a special disaster zone. Under this provision, the government will pay burial fees for the dead, medical expenses for the injured and condolence payments for the families of the victims.
NPR’s Se Eun Gong contributed to this report from Seoul.
