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Death By Crowd: Stampedes & Crushes

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fluffle9

Abominable Snowman
(ACCOUNT RETIRED)
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May 1, 2004
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Three die in Saudi shop stampede
A stampede of hundreds of shoppers in western Saudi Arabia has left at least three people crushed to death.

A Saudi man and a Pakistani man were among those killed, officials in the port city of Jeddah said.

The incident occurred after shoppers rushed into a branch of Ikea to claim a limited number of credit vouchers being offered to the public.

More than 8,000 people had gathered near the store for the 0 vouchers, some of them having camped overnight.

The nationality of the third person killed was not given. Sixteen people were injured.

Ikea opened its doors at 0900 local time (0600 GMT), one hour ahead of the allotted tine, because of the large numbers of people who had gathered outside the store.

One shopper among the crowd said barriers had broken and security guards were unable to cope. He likened the scene to crowds at a rock concert and said he'd never seen anything similar in the country before.

Saudi press reports said the vouchers offer was part of a major revamp of Ikea in Saudi Arabia, with two brand new stores opening simultaneously in Jeddah and the capital Riyadh.

Reports say the new showrooms have 200% more space than the old stores.
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/3618190.stm

i shouldn't laugh...
 
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I guess this fits here.

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — A stampede erupted on Tuesday at a funeral procession for a top Iranian general killed in a U.S. airstrike last week, killing 32 people and injuring 190 others, state television reported.

According to the report, the stampede took place in Kerman, the hometown of Revolutionary Guard Gen. Qassem Soleimani, as the procession got underway. Initial videos posted online showed people lying lifeless on a road and others shouting and trying to help them.

Iranian state TV gave the casualty toll in its online report, citing Pirhossein Koulivand, the head of Iran’s emergency medical services.
“Unfortunately as a result of the stampede, some of our compatriots have been injured and some have been killed during the funeral processions,” he earlier said.

Authorities later delayed Soleimani’s burial, citing concerns about the massive crowd that had gathered, the semi-official ISNA news agency said. It did not say when the burial would take place.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/stampede-funeral-procession-iran-dead-injured_n_5e145232c5b6b5a713c04448
 
ramonmercado said:
I guess this fits here. TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — A stampede erupted on Tuesday at a funeral procession for a top Iranian general killed in a U.S. airstrike last week, killing 32 people and injuring 190 others, state television reported.
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It killed more Iranians than the drone strike. Perhaps the USA needs to do this more regularly in countries that have no concept of abstract ideas and organizational systems like basic crowd control?
 
AlchoPwn said:
It killed more Iranians than the drone strike. Perhaps the USA needs to do this more regularly in countries that have no concept of abstract ideas and organizational systems like basic crowd control?
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It happens every year at the Hajj. No need for the USA to get involved.
 
At least 8 are known dead from a crowd crush at a Houston music festival.
Crowd surge kills at least 8 at Houston music festival

The crowd at a Houston music festival surged violently toward the stage during a performance by rapper Travis Scott, squeezing fans so tightly together that they could not breathe or move their arms, witnesses said Saturday, hours after at least eight people died in the chaos.

The pandemonium unfolded Friday evening at Astroworld, a sold-out, two-day event at the NRG Park stadium. An estimated 50,000 people were in attendance. It was not clear what set the crowd in motion. ...

Seventeen people were taken to hospitals, including 11 who were in cardiac arrest, Peña said, and “scores of individuals” were injured. ...
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FULL STORY: https://apnews.com/article/travis-s...-crowd-surge-6c697502318c50ba4b57aa1c6f71f9bf
 
This Associated Press article provides a handy overview of crowd disasters during the past 4 decades.
A look at some of the world’s major crowd disasters

... Here’s a look at some of the major crowd disasters in recent decades:

Dec. 3, 1979 — Eleven people are killed as thousands of fans rush to get into a concert by The Who at Riverfront Coliseum in Cincinnati.

Oct. 20, 1982 — Sixty-six people die in a crush of fans leaving a UEFA Cup match between Spartak Moscow and Haarlem, of the Netherlands, at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow.

May 28, 1985 — Thirty-nine people died in fan violence at the 1985 European Cup final between Liverpool and Juventus at Heysel Stadium in Brussels.

March 13, 1988 — Ninety-three people are killed when thousands of soccer fans surge into locked stadium exits to escape a sudden hailstorm in Kathmandu, Nepal. ...

April 15, 1989 — Ninety-seven people die and hundreds are injured in a crush of fans at overcrowded Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield, Scotland. One victim died this June of aspiration pneumonia, to which he had been left vulnerable because of injuries from the disaster.

July 2, 1990 — During the annual hajj in Saudi Arabia, 1,426 Muslim pilgrims, mainly from Asia, die in and around a long pedestrian tunnel leading from Mecca to Mina. ...

January 13, 1991 — Forty-two people are killed when fans try to escape brawls at Oppenheimer Stadium in South Africa.

May 23, 1994 — A crush of pilgrims at the hajj leaves 270 Muslim pilgrims dead.

Nov. 23, 1994 — A panicked crush during a political protest in Nagpur, India, leaves 113 dead.

Oct. 16, 1996 — Eighty-four people die and 147 are injured as panicked fans are crushed and smothered before a World Cup qualifier between Guatemala and Costa Rica in Guatemala City.

April 9, 1998 — A crush of pilgrims on a bridge in Mecca leaves 118 hajj pilgrims dead.

April 11, 2001 — At least 43 people are crushed to death during a soccer match at Ellis Park in Johannesburg, South Africa.

May 9, 2001 — More than 120 people are killed when police fire tear gas into the rowdy crowd in a stadium in the Ghanaian capital Accra, leading to panic.

Feb. 17, 2003 — Twenty-one are crushed to death in the stairway exit to E2, a nightclub in Chicago.

Feb. 20, 2003 — Stage pyrotechnics during a Great White concert at the Station nightclub in Warwick, Rhode Island, spark a fire that kills 100 people and injures more than 200 others.

Feb. 1, 2004 — A panic during a hajj ritual at the Jamarat Bridge near Mecca leaves 251 people dead.

Jan. 25, 2005 — A panic among Hindu pilgrims near Mandhradevi temple in Maharashtra, India, leaves 265 people dead. ...

Aug. 31, 2005 — At least 640 Shiite Muslim pilgrims in Baghdad are killed when a railing on a bridge collapses during a religious procession, sending scores into the Tigris River.

Jan. 12, 2006 — A panic among Muslim pilgrims during a hajj ceremony near Mecca leaves 345 people dead.

Feb. 4, 2006 — Seventy-eight people are killed in a panicked crush that happened at PhilSports Arena stampede in Manila, Philippines, as they were waiting for a TV variety show audition.

Sept. 30, 2008 — At least 168 people are killed and 100 are injured when thousands of Hindu pilgrims are caught in a panic at a temple in Jodhpur, India.

July 24, 2010 — Twenty-one people die and more than 650 are injured in a crush in a packed tunnel that was the sole access point to the Love Parade music festival in Duisburg, Germany.

Nov. 22, 2010 — More than 340 people are killed and hundreds of others are injured during a panicked crush at a festival in the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh.

Jan. 27, 2013 — A fire kills more than 200 people at the Kiss nightclub in Santa Maria, Brazil.

Sept. 24, 2015 — At least 2,411 Muslim pilgrims die in a crush during the hajj in Saudi Arabia.

April 30, 2021 — Forty-five people are killed and dozens more are wounded in a panicked crush at the annual Mount Meron pilgrimage in Israel. ...
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FULL STORY: https://apnews.com/article/entertai...music-europe-e96381510a6ad458d12aa8da9e3c0b7d
 
One curious thing is that there had already been a crowd surge problem earlier during the same Houston concert, when numerous people attempted to gain admittance through a VIP entrance. No-one was killed in this incident, but several people were hurt.

This clip is unusual because it shows the incident in progress, including people on the ground with other people trying to get over them.
https://abc13.com/astroworld-festival-travis-scotts-houston-crowds-trampled/11202546/
crowd.png

Note; this is a different incident to the much later crowd surge during the concert, but it suggests that there were already problems with crowd management.
 
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eburacum said:
Note; this is a different incident to the much later crowd surge during the concert, but it suggests that there were already problems with crowd management.
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I really wonder how effective crowd control is - and how well it was planned - when people can literally break into the venue.
 
This Travis Scott thing got weird REALLY FAST. First it's linked to the Needle Panic and now, Satanic conspiracies.
https://www.relevantmagazine.com/cu...ound-the-tragedy-at-the-travis-scott-concert/

"...amateur internet sleuths began speculating that Scott had deliberately plotted the deadly stampede as part of a Satanic “blood sacrifice.” It’s a baseless conspiracy theory, but it’s one that’s picked up a considerable amount of steam on certain corners of social media.

As proof, social media users pointed to some macabre elements of Scott’s stage show and promotional materials, including some diabolic imagery inspired by Hieronymus Bosch’s “Christ In Limbo” painting. The festival’s tagline, “See You on the Other Side,” has certainly taken on a horribly dark irony in the tragedy’s wake. Others have alleged that Scott continued to perform even as fans started to pass out and call for help.""
 
It seems to be true Scott was continuing his act as the tragedy unfolded, but he wasn't actively encouraging the tragedy. He appears to be linked to the Kardashians, I'm surprised someone hasn't roped them into the conspiracy too (or have they?).
 
Sharon Hill said:
This Travis Scott thing got weird REALLY FAST. First it's linked to the Needle Panic and now, Satanic conspiracies.
https://www.relevantmagazine.com/cu...ound-the-tragedy-at-the-travis-scott-concert/

"...amateur internet sleuths began speculating that Scott had deliberately plotted the deadly stampede as part of a Satanic “blood sacrifice.” It’s a baseless conspiracy theory, but it’s one that’s picked up a considerable amount of steam on certain corners of social media.

As proof, social media users pointed to some macabre elements of Scott’s stage show and promotional materials, including some diabolic imagery inspired by Hieronymus Bosch’s “Christ In Limbo” painting. The festival’s tagline, “See You on the Other Side,” has certainly taken on a horribly dark irony in the tragedy’s wake. Others have alleged that Scott continued to perform even as fans started to pass out and call for help.""
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:roll: Is rock and roll music no longer the go to music for satanists?
 
OK, I was prepared to cut Scott some slack for an accident he had no control over, but now he's being mightily sued and after reading this:
News story

...I'm not so sure of his innocence. It says he always asks the audience to rush the stage (or "rage") at his concerts, he was the organiser of the show, and basically he was doing everything the survivors accuse him of except injecting people with drugs. Looks bad for him, and if he is that irresponsible, he only has himself to blame.
 
The management of the show was by Live Nation, one of the largest and most experienced in the field. Astonished that they permitted his actions and that training and resources were not sufficient.
 

Africa Cup of Nations: Deadly crush reported at Cameroon stadium​

Six people are reported to have been killed and dozens hurt in a crush outside a stadium hosting an Africa Cup of Nations match in Cameroon.
Video footage showed football fans struggling to get access to the Paul Biya stadium in a neighbourhood of the capital Yaounde.
Naseri Paul Biya, governor of Cameroon's central region, said there may be more casualties, AP News said.
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Looks like a stampede but might have been something else.

At least 20 people have been found dead in a nightclub in South Africa's East London city, officials say.

Bodies were found at the Enyobeni Tavern early on Sunday, and reports say several people were injured.

"The circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation as we speak," a police spokesman told the Newzroom Africa television channel. We do not want to make any speculations at this stage," Brigadier Tembinkosi Kinana said.

A large number of emergency service personnel are on the scene in the Eastern Cape province. Relatives of the victims have been unable to see their bodies, reports say, and locals have called for the venue to be closed.

Eastern Cape Police Commissioner Nomthetheleli Lilian Mene told SABC News that "there was an alleged stampede inside the tavern".

The BBC has been unable to verify this and details are still emerging.

Four people have been taken to hospital, SABC reports.

Brigadier Kinana told reporters most of those found dead were young adults aged between 18 and 20.

Eyewitnesses told the Daily Dispatch newspaper that bodies were lying inside the venue as if they had collapsed on the floor.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-61941170
 
ramonmercado said:
Looks like a stampede but might have been something else.

At least 20 people have been found dead in a nightclub in South Africa's East London city, officials say.

Bodies were found at the Enyobeni Tavern early on Sunday, and reports say several people were injured.

"The circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation as we speak," a police spokesman told the Newzroom Africa television channel. We do not want to make any speculations at this stage," Brigadier Tembinkosi Kinana said.

A large number of emergency service personnel are on the scene in the Eastern Cape province. Relatives of the victims have been unable to see their bodies, reports say, and locals have called for the venue to be closed.

Eastern Cape Police Commissioner Nomthetheleli Lilian Mene told SABC News that "there was an alleged stampede inside the tavern".

The BBC has been unable to verify this and details are still emerging.

Four people have been taken to hospital, SABC reports.

Brigadier Kinana told reporters most of those found dead were young adults aged between 18 and 20.

Eyewitnesses told the Daily Dispatch newspaper that bodies were lying inside the venue as if they had collapsed on the floor.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-61941170
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Nightclub 'poison' exposure leaves 17 tragically dead with underage children among victims

“…one official claimed that first photos from the scene seem to suggest that the cause of death is unlikely to have been a stampede as the bodies are described as laying on chairs with no obvious sign of injury.

The cause of death is unknown but early speculation suggested that the punters could have been exposed to a kind of poisonous substance.

"What is clear is that there was a stampede that took place but whether it is the cause of the fatalities that will be subject to the forensic investigation.

"Some of the bodies were found on top of the tables, there were no open wounds, there were no bruises that may point to stampede. We are talking about a small tavern.

"There were bodies found on both floors so that may put into doubt the issue of stampede.”. “

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/worl...th-underage-children-among-victims/ar-AAYSwTn

maximus otter
 
maximus otter said:
Nightclub 'poison' exposure leaves 17 tragically dead with underage children among victims

“…one official claimed that first photos from the scene seem to suggest that the cause of death is unlikely to have been a stampede as the bodies are described as laying on chairs with no obvious sign of injury.

The cause of death is unknown but early speculation suggested that the punters could have been exposed to a kind of poisonous substance.

"What is clear is that there was a stampede that took place but whether it is the cause of the fatalities that will be subject to the forensic investigation.

"Some of the bodies were found on top of the tables, there were no open wounds, there were no bruises that may point to stampede. We are talking about a small tavern.

"There were bodies found on both floors so that may put into doubt the issue of stampede.”. “

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/worl...th-underage-children-among-victims/ar-AAYSwTn

maximus otter
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.
Still no clarity on cause of deaths.

A preliminary toxicology report into the deaths of more than 20 young people at a bar in South Africa has proved inconclusive.

The provincial department of health said tests conducted at a laboratory in Cape Town found alcohol and carbon monoxide in the victims' blood but not at deadly levels. It said methanol was also found but further testing was under way to determine the levels.

Twenty-one young people - mostly teenagers - were found dead last month in the coastal city of East London.

The owner of the bar and two of his employees have been charged with breaching regulations regarding sales of alcohol.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world?ns_m...d6a1efc0a04b705829952b&pinned_post_type=share
 
Indonesian soccer crowd panicked after police used tear gas in response to a post-game riot. The ensuing stampede / crush resulted in over a hundred deaths.
125 die as tear gas triggers crush at Indonesia soccer match

Panic and a chaotic run for exits after police fired tear gas at an Indonesian soccer match to drive away fans upset with their team’s loss left at least 125 dead, most of whom were trampled upon or suffocated, making it one of the deadliest sports events in the world. ...

Violence broke out after the game ended Saturday evening with host Arema FC of East Java’s Malang city losing to Persebaya of Surabaya 3-2. ...

Disappointed with their team’s loss, thousands of supporters of Arema, known as “Aremania,” reacted by throwing bottles and other objects at players and soccer officials. Witnesses said fans flooded the Kanjuruhan Stadium pitch ...

The violence spread outside the stadium where at least five police vehicles were toppled and set ablaze. Riot police responded by firing tear gas, including toward the stadium’s stands, causing panic among the crowd. ...

Spectator Ahmad Fatoni said police had started beating the fans with sticks and shields, and they fought back.

“Officers fired tear gas directly at spectators in the stands, forcing us to run toward the exit,” he said. “Many victims fell because of shortness of breath and difficulty seeing due to tear gas and were trampled.” ...

Others suffocated and were trampled as hundreds of people ran to the exit to avoid the tear gas. In the chaos, 34 died at the stadium, including two officers, and some reports include children among the casualties. ...

More than 300 were rushed to hospitals but many died on the way and during a treatment ...

Saturday’s game is already among the world’s worst crowd disasters, including the 1996 World Cup qualifier between Guatemala and Costa Rica in Guatemala City where over 80 died and over 100 more were injured. In April 2001, more than 40 people are crushed to death during a soccer match at Ellis Park in Johannesburg, South Africa. ...
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FULL STORY: https://apnews.com/article/sports-soccer-police-indonesia-java-c31edecf524ddbb1d3a4b276c581d0b0

See Also:
EXPLAINER: What’s behind Indonesia’s deadly soccer match?
https://apnews.com/article/sports-s...nternational-905908bdd0124a87b25689c7a5dd857a
 
At least 146 dead, many injured, in a crush in Seoul, South Korea at a Halloween event.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-asia-63442399

EDIT:

@Yithian

Initial reports say that people fell in a crowded alleyway that was on a slope, causing them to fall backwards and into others who then fell down the slope.

Is there any more news from the Korean media?
 
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Victory said:
At least 146 dead, many injured, in a crush in Seoul, South Korea at a Halloween event.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-asia-63442399

EDIT:

@Yithian

Initial reports say that people fell in a crowded alleyway that was on a slope, causing them to fall backwards and into others who then fell down the slope.

Is there any more news from the Korean media?
Click to expand...

In a hurry, so forgive the lack of structure:

151 dead now. A bad business.

I started yesterday with a single official notification of a (minor) earthquake, and at 2355hrs started receiving a series of warnings to leave Itaewon and not attempt travel there. I saw the graphic videos of dozens of people receiving CPR in the street just minutes after it was filmed and watched the statistics climb until I fell asleep.

Lots of people are using words like 'unimaginable' and 'incomprehensible', but If you've ever been in a concert crush (I have, and I also I recall a surge in the football terraces when I was at a match as a child), this won't be a big surprise to you. It's more a matter of human nature and crowd physics; in fact, I sketched a possible scenario in a message to a friend last night:

This is imaginary:
...a heaving club door opens to let somebody out or throw out a crate of empty bottles and two or three people at the front nip inside to see whether there's room for any more. A metre or so of space has opened up, so those behind move forward to occupy it--and then those few that went inside are ejected and the door is closed again. As soon as there's a hint of movement ahead, everybody behind (without sight of the reason for that movement) tries to move up, and momentum begets momentum as everybody thinks there's an opportunity to make precious progress. Before anybody near the back knows what's going on, people are being forced from their feet, stepped on and unable to breathe just fifty metres ahead.

Itaewon is effectively one main road with a warren of backstreets behind the lines of shopfronts--quite similar to some parts of London. The subway station spills out (literally) onto the main road (when busy it's challenging to go anywhere other than where everyone else is going), but all of the trendy bars and clubs are located off the drag with bad access (because, like London, the area has evolved and was never planned). I was last there a few years ago at a tiki bar, there's a good Greek restaurant I rate, and when I was single I used to spend an afternoon with a beer or two and a copy of Stars & Stripes, but although--like everywhere in Korea--it's pretty safe, at night it's no place to take children--least of all on Hallowe'en.

It hasn't appeared yet, but give it a few days of tactical silence and I predict there will be ultra-conservatives saying 'this is what you get' when you allow a neighbourhood to be overrun with goddless hedonism' (Hallowe'en has only become 'a big thing' for young adults in the past decade or so). Itaewon is one of the areas where prostitution used to abound (partly because until recently it was home to the biggest U.S. Army base. It was almost (not quite) the only place of note in Seoul with enough gay bars to warrant the name 'a community', plus owing to the cosmopolitan eating and drinking, there are often a large number of foreigners (and particularly Westerners) there.

I'm expecting: 'When impressionable young Koreans act like Americans, drink and take drugs (not much of this, but it will feature), is it any surprise when god allows things to happen...?'

You read it here first.

Miss Yith's school has written to cancel their Hallowe'en events; one of my university students has messaged to assure me she got out of the area safely.

The local media is describing this in scale/impact to the Sewol disaster:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinking_of_MV_Sewol

Edit: I suppose it's because, unlike me, many of the western expat community have links with (or live in) the area, but my daughter's school counselor has written to advise us on how to broach the subject with our children. Perhaps I'm a cold fish, but to be perfectly honest, having had two years of daily Covid-death reports in their hundreds (here), I can't feel anything beyond intellectualised sympathy towards the victims and their families—my empathy chip is clearly faulty.

It's horrible and I wish it had never happened, but it feels more like 'something on the news' than a local disaster.
 
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