Mourners pay respects as 154 folks confirmed lifeless within the catastrophe, which happened throughout Halloween celebrations in Seoul.
South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo has promised a radical investigation into the Halloween crush over the weekend that killed greater than 150 folks within the capital and plunged the nation into mourning.
Officers mentioned on Monday the dying toll had risen to 154, with 149 folks injured, 33 of them in critical situation.
Tens of hundreds of individuals had crowded into the slender streets and alleyways of Seoul’s widespread Itaewon district on Saturday for the primary main Halloween festivities because the COVID-19 pandemic struck three years in the past.
Most of the revellers have been of their teenagers and wearing Halloween costumes.
However chaos erupted when folks poured into one significantly slender and sloping alley, even after it was already packed, witnesses mentioned.
On Monday morning, folks laid white chrysanthemums, drinks and candles outdoors an exit of the Itaewon metro station, a couple of steps away from the positioning of the crush.
“It doesn’t matter how they died, or why they died. These poor folks, all at comparable ages to my grandchildren, they died anyway,” mentioned Jung Si-hoon, a retiree and a church elder, who positioned an previous wood cross on the makeshift altar.
“What extra ought to we are saying? We must always pray for them and need they relaxation in peace.”
Retailers and cafés close by have been closed, and police cordoned off the positioning of the tragedy as they continued their investigations.
Faculties, kindergartens and corporations across the nation scrapped deliberate Halloween occasions. Ok-pop concert events and authorities briefings have been additionally cancelled.
“The federal government will undertake a radical investigation into what brought on this accident and do its greatest to make needed institutional adjustments in order that such an accident isn’t repeated,” Prime Minister Han mentioned as authorities officers met on the catastrophe.
“Identification has been accomplished for all the 154 deceased besides one, and I imagine it’s time for follow-up measures corresponding to funeral procedures to be carried out in earnest,” Han mentioned. “We’ll do our greatest to offer needed assist by reflecting the opinions of the bereaved households as a lot as doable.”
President Yoon Suk-yeol, who has declared a interval of nationwide mourning and designated Itaewon a catastrophe zone, visited a memorial altar outdoors the Seoul metropolis corridor together with his spouse on Monday to pay his respects to those that died. Former United Nations Secretary-Normal Ban Ki-moon was additionally amongst these expressing their condolences.
The crush of partygoers got here as Itaewon, an emblem of freewheeling nightlife within the South Korean capital for many years, was starting to get better from extended pandemic restrictions with new eating places and outlets opening.
The catastrophe is the worst in South Korea because the Sewol ferry sank in 2014, killing 304 folks, most of them highschool college students.
The sinking of the Sewol and criticism of the official response despatched shockwaves throughout South Korea, prompting widespread soul-searching over security measures which are more likely to be renewed within the wake of Saturday’s crush.