Nearly 150 people, some in masquerade costumes, were killed and some 150 more were injured Saturday in a horrific stampede in central Seoul when a large crowd celebrating Halloween crammed into a narrow street, officials said.
Witnesses described scrambling to get out of the suffocating crowd, people piling on top of one another, and paramedics, overwhelmed by the number of victims, asking passersby to administer first aid.
"There were so many people just being pushed around and I got caught in the crowd and I couldn't get out at first too," 30-year-old Jeon Ga-eul told AFP. "I felt like an accident was bound to happen."
The stampede took place near the Hamilton Hotel in the nightlife district of Itaewon where a large number of people gathered in a narrow alley near the hotel.
Fire Department official Choi Seong-beom said the stampede, which occurred around 10:00 pm (1300 GMT), left 146 people dead and at least 150 injured.
"The high number of casualties was the result of many being trampled during the Halloween event," Choi told reporters at the scene Sunday morning, adding that the death toll could climb.
AFP photos from the scene showed scores of bodies spread on the pavement covered by bed sheets and emergency workers dressed in orange vests loading even more bodies on stretchers into ambulances.
In an interview with local broadcaster YTN, Lee Beom-suk, a doctor who administered first aid to the victims described scenes of tragedy and chaos.
"When I first attempted CPR there were two victims lying on the pavement. But the number exploded soon after, outnumbering first responders at the scene," Lee said. "Many bystanders came to help us with CPR."
"It's hard to put in words to describe," he added. "So many victims' faces were pale. I could not catch their pulse or breath and many of them had a bloody nose. When I tried CPR, I also pumped blood out of their mouths."
The Yonhap news agency also quoted an unidentified witness as saying the person saw victims crushed to death.
"People were layered on top of others like a tomb. Some were gradually losing their consciousness while some looked dead by that point," the witness said, according to Yonhap.
Twitter user @janelles_story shared a video that she said depicted scenes from Itaewon shortly before the stampede began, in which hundreds of young people, some clad in pirate, cowboy and other Halloween costumes, are seen in a narrow street lined with bars and cafes.
The crowd appears in good spirits and calm at first, but then a commotion begins and people start being pushed and pressed into one another. Screams and gasps are heard and a female voice cries out in English "Shit, shit!" followed by "Oh my god, oh my god!"
Choi said the victims' bodies are being transferred to a gym not far from the site of the stampede and to area hospitals to be identified.
Local television showed scores of ambulances streaming to the Soon Chun Hyang University Hospital, where some of the victims had been taken.
Officials had said earlier that 50 people were in cardiac arrest and that more than 140 ambulances were dispatched to the scene to aid the victims.
President Yoon Suk-yeol ordered officials to dispatch first aid teams and to swiftly secure hospital beds for those affected, the presidential office said.
Meanwhile, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, who was on a visit to Europe, decided to return home in the wake of the accident, Yonhap reported, citing city officials.
In Washington, Seoul's staunch ally, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan wrote on Twitter that "the reports out of Seoul are heartbreaking."
"We are thinking about all those who lost loved ones and hoping for a quick recovery for those injured," Sullivan said. "The United States stands ready to provide the Republic of Korea with any support it needs."
French President Emmanuel Macron meanwhile offered his country's "heartfelt" support, adding that "France is by your side."
Ju Young Possamai, a bartender in the Itaewon district, said he had been to several Halloween celebrations in Korea and was shocked by the tragedy.
"It was very sad to see something that we never, never expected," Possamai, 24, told AFP. "It's always crowded, but nothing like this has ever happened before."
This year's celebration is the first since the pandemic broke out in 2020 at which South Koreans have not been mandated to wear face masks outdoors.