A woman from Australia is among the over 150 persons murdered in South Korea’s Halloween stampede, which occurred on Halloween.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade acknowledged the news on Sunday while continuing “urgent inquiries” to determine whether or not any Australians were caught up in the turmoil.
A DFAT representative stated, “The Australian embassy in Seoul has been informed of the death of an Australian during the unfortunate occurrence in Seoul.”
“Consular officers from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade are assisting the relatives of the individual in Australia.”
A number of other Australians who were present at the event are also being assisted by consular personnel.
“The Australian government extends its condolences to the family and all those touched by this awful event. Please respect the privacy of the family during this difficult time.’
At least 151 people were killed and hundreds more were injured in a large stampede in Seoul, South Korea on Saturday, when rescue services were overwhelmed by a lethal crush among a 100,000-strong crowd on a tiny street during Halloween celebrations.
Initially, a National Fire Agency official estimated that approximately 100 individuals were hurt during the tragic crowd rush on Saturday night, but the number rapidly increased.
It is estimated that 100,000 people had come in Itaewon to attend the 2022 Halloween Festival, the first time it had been staged at this level since Covid, with the crush occurring at 10pm local time.
Officials verified that dozens of victims suffered cardiac arrest, and it is anticipated that the death toll will continue to grow. A handful of hospitalized patients remain in critical condition.
Photos from the scene depicted at least 25 victims covered by yellow blankets laying on the ground in the streets of Seoul. A separate row of bodies wrapped in blue blankets was also captured on camera.
President Yoon Suk-yeol of South Korea stated on Sunday morning that the tragic stampede’should not have occurred’, as the magnitude of the catastrophe was still being assessed.
“In the heart of Seoul, a tragedy and disaster that should not have occurred occurred,” Yoon said in a national speech, pledging to “thoroughly investigate” the situation and guarantee it never occurs again.
According to local emergency personnel, the majority of the victims were youths or young adults in their teens or early twenties. Due to the overwhelming number of deaths, a makeshift morgue was put up in a nearby building.
Officials stated that it was thought that victims were crushed to death after a large throng began pushing forward in a tiny alley outside Hamilton Hotel, a popular Seoul party venue, after hearing rumors that a celebrity was close.
On the streets of Itaewon, dozens of patients received CPR, while many others were sent to nearby hospitals.
One witness described the severity of the crush, stating, “People were piled on top of one another like a tomb.” Some were progressively losing consciousness, while others appeared to be dead at that time.
Images and videos on social media depict horrifying images of fear in the aftermath of the crush and people’s desperate attempts to leave the tragic building.
A particularly harrowing footage depicted dozens of individuals battling to breathe and stay on their feet in the crowd as rescuers worked to remove those most in need of medical care.
More than 1,700 South Korean emergency personnel were dispatched to one of the bloodiest crowd crushes in recent history. Additional footage overlooking the street showed hundreds of rescue personnel doing CPR to victims who were sprawled on the roadway.
A man was depicted climbing a nearly horizontal wall high above the crowd to escape the chaos below.
Social media videos depicted scores of unmoving bodies lying on the ground in the aftermath of the incident, surrounded by dozens of emergency personnel and members of the general public.
The majority of the figures receiving CPR are believed to have suffered cardiac arrests.
The fatal tragedy occurred as the crowded mob rushed into a tiny alley.
Social media footage depicted hundreds of people squashed and motionless in the sloping alley as emergency personnel and police attempted to extricate them.
A Reuters witness reported that a makeshift mortuary was set up in a nearby building. According to the witness, approximately four dozen bodies were transported on wheeled stretchers to a government facility for identification.
Choi Seong-beom, chief of the Yongsan fire station in Seoul, stated that the death toll could grow as emergency workers continued to carry the injured to hospitals across the city following the Saturday night stampede in the Itaewon entertainment district.
Following the stampede, an unspecified number of the injured were in critical condition. It is estimated that at least 100 others were injured.
According to Choi, the stampede occurred around 10:20 p.m. (1300 GMT) and many victims were crushed to death.
Choi stated that the large number of casualties was due to many people getting crushed during the Halloween celebration, adding that the death toll could rise.
He stated that many of the victims were young ladies in their twenties.
Hundreds of police officers had been sent to the area in anticipation of the big crowds on Saturday evening, but they allegedly struggled to maintain order in the minutes before the disaster occurred.
However, rescue personnel were originally so stretched and overloaded that dozens of bystanders and witnesses attempted to aid the injured and dying.
According to local media reports, Seoul has established a registry for anyone seeking information about loved ones.
Hwang Min-hyeok, a tourist to Itaewon, stated in an interview with the news station YTN that emergency personnel were first overloaded, allowing passersby to administer CPR to the injured on the streets. He stated that people wept beside the bodies of their pals.
Yonhap news agency claimed that another survivor in his twenties avoided being crushed by entering a pub whose door was open at the alley. A woman in her twenties with the surname Park stated that she and others were standing on the side of the alley while those in the alley’s center were unable to escape.
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Rishi Sunak expressed his condolences to the people of South Korea, describing the news emanating from the country as “horrific.”
He stated, “Awful news from Seoul tonight.”
Our prayers are with those who are now responding and with all South Koreans during this difficult moment.
Labour leader Keir Starmer stated, “My sympathies are with the bereaved relatives and friends.”
After the disaster in Itaewon, French President Emmanuel Macron tweeted, “My thoughts are with the citizens of Seoul and all Koreans this evening.”
The French are at your side.
US Vice President Joe Biden extended condolences to South Korea and stated that the United States “stands with” South Korea.
Biden said in a statement, ‘We grieve with the people of the Republic of Korea and give our best wishes for a speedy recovery to all those who were hurt.’
He said on Twitter, “Jill and I extend our sincere sympathies to the families whose loved ones were lost in Seoul.”
“We mourn with the people of the Republic of Korea and hope for a speedy recovery for those who were hurt.” In this tragic time, the United States stands with the Republic of Korea.
Tottenham Hotspur also issued a statement in response to the unfortunate occurrence. Son Heung-min, one of their star players, is a native of South Korea.
Unidentified witness was mentioned by the Yonhap news agency in South Korea as stating that he witnessed people being crushed to death.
People were stacked upon one another as in a tomb. According to Yonhap, a witness stated that some of the victims were losing consciousness while others appeared to be deceased.
Earlier in the evening, it was claimed that 74 of the deceased have been brought to hospitals, while the bodies of at least 46 are being transported to a local gym for identification purposes.
According to officials, victims were crushed to death when a large throng began to push forward in a tight lane outside the Hamilton Hotel, a prominent party venue in Seoul, during a celebration.
Separately, the National Fire Agency stated that officials were still attempting to determine the precise number of emergency patients.
TV images and photographs from the incident depicted ambulances lined up in the streets alongside a large police presence and emergency personnel transporting injured victims on stretchers.
Onlookers and emergency personnel were also observed administering CPR to stricken individuals in the streets. Multiple individuals, presumably among the injured, were observed wrapped in yellow blankets.
More than 1,700 emergency personnel from throughout the nation were mobilized, including approximately 520 firefighters, 1,100 police officers, and 70 government employees.
Every worker in the capital who was available was enlisted to assist.
This includes 140 ambulances that rushed to the site after thousands of people entered a small street in the party district of the capital city.
Police officials have been photographed commencing their investigation of the event by collecting evidence from the ground.
As the sun rose above Seoul, scores of security personnel remained at the location to assure its safety.
Earlier local media sources stated that the crowding occurred because a big number of people flocked to a pub in Itaewon after hearing that an unidentified celebrity had come.
Online videos appear to show people climbing the walls of the street to escape the congestion, and then being lowered a considerable distance to adjacent streets.
Images and videos depicted dozens of individuals lying on the ground while emergency personnel and members of the general public administered CPR. Some victims lay on the ground after resuscitation efforts failed.
At the same time, photographs of lines of bodies wrapped in blue and yellow blankets have emerged.
It looked that several of those being treated by emergency personnel were children.
President Yoon Suk Yeol of South Korea released a statement urging officials to ensure prompt medical care for the injured and assess the safety of the celebration places.
The mayor of Seoul, Oh Se-hoon, is now on a vacation to Europe but has opted to return home after hearing the news.
According to reports, he has already returned to South Korea.
The local government has sent an emergency notice to all mobile phones instructing residents to leave the region as quickly as possible.
Local media claim that President Yeol conducted an emergency meeting and instructed that the top priorities be treating and evacuating people from the area.
They stated that approximately 100,000 people went to the streets of Itaewon for the Halloween celebrations, which were the largest in years due to the recent relaxing of Covid-19 regulations.
Park Jung-hoon, 21, told reporters at the scene, “You would see large crowds during Christmas and fireworks, but this was more than ten times more than that.”
Authorities are investigating the incident’s actual cause.