South Korea: At least 120 dead and 100 injured in a stampede

Shock gripped the streets of Seoul after a stampede Saturday night. According to the latest official count, 120 people died during Halloween celebrations, and 100 were injured. Authorities initially reported that dozens of people had been treated for “cardiac arrest” after thousands of revelers crowded the narrow streets of a district in the South Korean capital to party, South Korean firefighters said. In South Korea, emergency services officials refer to a person as “cardiac arrest” until a doctor has officially pronounced them dead.

A fire department spokesperson indicated that 140 ambulances had been deployed to the scene to take care of the victims.

Cardiac massage

As shown in videos circulating on social media, the victims were caught in a crowd surge in the area where Halloween celebrations draw large numbers of people in the South Korean capital. South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol has ordered hospitals to be prepared to receive the injured, the presidential office said.

Photographs published by the Yonhap news agency showed more than a dozen people lying in the street, with rescuers performing CPR on some of them, while police kept the crowd at bay with security cordons. According to video footage, about 20 bodies were covered with sheets or blankets, with rescuers making no attempt to revive them. Other victims were being carried on stretchers to ambulances.

According to video footage, around twenty bodies were covered with sheets or blankets, as rescuers were not attempting to revive them. Other victims were being carried on stretchers to ambulances.

This year’s Halloween celebrations are the first since the Covid-19 pandemic, during which South Koreans were required to wear masks outdoors. AFP

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