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Seoul Halloween crowd crush one year on: What we know

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Agence France-Presse 

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt=" A man offers an alcoholic beverage to pay tribute to those who perished during the Halloween stampede, at a makeshift memorial outside the Itaewon subway station in Seoul. Anthony Wallace, AFP/File " src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2022/overseas/10/31/20221031-itaewon-stampede-tribute-afp-s.jpg "/><figcaption>A man offers an alcoholic beverage to pay tribute to those who perished during the Halloween stampede, at a makeshift memorial outside the Itaewon subway station in Seoul. <em>Anthony Wallace, AFP/File </em></figcaption></figure></div><p>SEOUL — On Halloween weekend last year, nearly 160 people were crushed to death in a narrow alleyway in South Korea&#x27;s capital after the country&#x27;s first post-pandemic holiday celebrations descended into deadly chaos.</p><p>One year on, despite an investigation and ongoing prosecutions of local officials, families of the victims -- who were overwhelmingly young women in their 20s and 30s -- say they are still searching for answers.</p><p>AFP takes a look at what we know:<br/> <br/><strong> WHAT HAPPENED?</strong></p><p>Survivors describe being trapped in an impossibly dense crowd of people -- swept off their feet and suffocated by the pressure of bodies around them -- after tens of thousands of people poured into Seoul&#x27;s Itaewon neighborhood on October 29, 2022 for Halloween celebrations.</p><p>There was only a light police presence and no advance crowd management plans as the event did not have an official organiser, allowing it to dodge the legally required preparations for mass gatherings.</p><p>In a narrow, sloping alleyway between streets of bars and clubs, 158 people -- including 28 foreigners -- were crushed to death. The official toll of 159 includes a teenage survivor who killed himself days after the disaster.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=2316822" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div><div><strong>WHAT&#x27;S CHANGED? </strong></div><p>This year&#x27;s Halloween is expected to be very subdued, with the public discouraged from celebrating.</p><p>Bars and nightclubs in Itaewon -- the go-to place for the US holiday -- are not promoting Halloween-themed events.</p><p>District officials initially banned Halloween celebrations at Hongdae, another popular drink-and-party neighborhood, but quickly scrapped it after criticism that they should prepare for crowd control rather than banning the public from going out.</p><p>The police have ramped up preparations for huge crowds, and this week carried out a drill using an AI-backed network of nearly 1,000 surveillance cameras designed to detect and flag dangerous crowding.</p><p>They have also cracked down on those dressing up as police officers for Halloween, warning that they can face up to six months in jail or up to 3 million won ($2,200) in fines.</p><p>&quot;Please do not wear costumes similar to police uniforms on Halloween to avoid confusion,&quot; a National Police Agency official said.</p><div><strong>WHAT DO VICTIMS SAY? </strong></div><p>A year on, victims&#x27; families and survivors of the disaster are still demanding answers for what exactly happened on the night and say they continue to experience &quot;frustration, pain and anger&quot;.</p><p>Yu Hyoung-woo, who lost his daughter to the Itaewon crush, said none of the victims&#x27; families have received a formal briefing from the government.</p><p>&quot;The South Korean government has yet to provide an explanation or take the necessary actions,&quot; he added.</p><p>A large portion of South Korean society still blamed the victims for going to Itaewon in the first place, said Nari Kim, whose brother died that night.</p><p>&quot;Let me make it very clear again, family&#x27;s loved ones died walking on the streets of Itaewon,&quot; Kim said.</p><p>&quot;It was not an accident and it could have been prevented,&quot; she added.</p><p>&quot;The government did not take it seriously, nor are they taking any responsibility.&quot;</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=2855521" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div><div><strong>AND OFFICIALS? </strong></div><p>The police probe found massive failures in planning, and a botched and delayed response to the unfolding catastrophe.</p><p>But it stopped short of blaming any top government officials, and no senior figures were fired or resigned over the disaster, drawing strong protests from victims&#x27; families.</p><p>Mid-level police officials and officials in the Yongsan district -- of which Itaewon is part -- were arrested in the months after the crush on charges of neglect of duty.</p><p>But legal proceedings have dragged on, even as all the officials have been released on bail. No one has been convicted.</p><p>Interior Minister Lee Sang-min was impeached by the opposition-controlled parliament over the disaster, but quickly reinstated by the Constitutional Court.</p><p>Yongsan district office chief Park Hee-young has claimed it was &quot;not required&quot; she prepare for the Halloween crowds, broadcaster MBC reported, blaming police crowd control failures instead.<br/><strong> </strong><br/><strong>WHAT&#x27;S ITAEWON LIKE NOW? </strong></p><p>This year, not a single Halloween-themed decoration can be spotted in Itaewon.</p><p>Instead, a red banner hangs on a street near the crush site reading: &quot;Safety Itaewon. This is a campaign we make together&quot;.</p><p>One bar has already pulled out Christmas decorations, hanging two wreaths on its exterior walls and a string of stars over its window, where a snowman dressed up as Santa is seated surrounded by red and gold gift boxes.</p><p>The site of the crush, which has been officially designated the &quot;October 29 Memorial Alley&quot;, is marked by a purple notice board filled with hundreds of messages for the victims from citizens and tourists.</p><p>&quot;One year. Time flies. I&#x27;m sorry nothing has been revealed yet. What we can do is to never forget you,&quot; read one of the notes.</p><p>Victims&#x27; families have said they will hold a commemoration in Itaewon on Sunday, but there is no event planned by the government.</p><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse </strong></div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=2856471" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div>

On Halloween weekend last year, nearly 160 people were crushed to death in a narrow alleyway in South Korea's capital after the country's first post-pandemic holiday celebrations descended into deadly chaos.