On October 29, 2022, a devastating tragedy struck the neighborhood of Itaewon in Seoul, South Korea. During a Halloween celebration, partygoers packed into a narrow alley known as World Food Street, where a gruesome crush ultimately claimed the lives of 158 people and injured almost 200, with seven still hospitalized as of Thursday in Seoul.

A Washington Post analysis of more than 350 videos and photos, as well as emergency call logs and witness interviews, shed light on the events leading up to and during the disaster. It was determined that partygoers had been pleading with police to divert the crowds for nearly four hours before the crash occurred. At 10:08 p.m., the dynamics of the crowded alley triggered the crush. A few police officers and other individuals at the edge of the chaos had been trying to redirect the crowd, but their efforts were unsuccessful. At least 16 more emergency calls were made between 10:08 p.m. and 10:22 p.m. when the video shows five officers struggling to pull out unconscious victims. It wasn't until 10:39 p.m. that emergency personnel closed off both ends of the alley, a delay of roughly half an hour that allowed foot traffic to continue into the area and hindered rescue efforts. Another 11 minutes passed before police mounted a broad response.

Multiple critical factors contributed to the tragedy and the high number of casualties. The alley became dangerously crowded as early as 6:28 p.m., with the first of at least 13 emergency calls coming in shortly after to warn of escalating chaos and injuries. Despite these warning signs, it took until 10:39 p.m. for emergency personnel to close off both ends of the alley, a delay that hindered rescue efforts and likely increased the number of fatalities.

The incident has been widely recognized as preventable, with experts citing inadequate crowd control as a significant factor. Young Ook Kim, an expert on crowd movement and spatial layout and behavior at Sejong University in Seoul, stated that "if you just go assess the site and discuss potential countermeasures, anyone who has the instincts and experience would have been able to foresee the situation." The tragedy serves as a reminder of the importance of effective crowd control and the need to take timely action to prevent such disasters from occurring.

심예준 강남포스트 학생기자  webmaster@ignnews.kr

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