South Korean authorities are investigating the crowd surge that killed at least 154 partygoers in Seoul, as the rattled nation attempts to come to terms with one of its worst-ever disasters.
The country has begun a week-long period of mourning while officials attempt to understand how the devastating crash took place.
At least 26 foreign nationals, including two US citizens, are among the dead. More than a dozen embassies around the globe have confirmed victims from their countries.
What caused Saturday’s surge is unclear, but witnesses say partygoers were packed tightly into narrow streets in the capital’s nightlife district of Itaewon, as people enjoyed the first Halloween weekend since Covid-19 restrictions were lifted.
Nearly all of the victims – at least 150 – have been identified; police said.
The toll included 56 men and 97 women, South Korea’s Interior and Safety Ministry reported.
South Korea’s Ministry of Education said Monday that six school students were among the dead, including one in middle school. Three teachers also died.
GUJARAT BRIDGE COLLAPSE
The death toll from the collapse of a colonial-era suspension bridge in India’s western Gujarat state has risen to 132, according to officials, as rescue workers worked through the night, combing the Machhu River for survivors.
Harsh Sanghavi, Gujarat’s home minister, told reporters that the death toll rose from 68 on Sunday to 132 early on Monday as search operations continued.
Gujarat’s Information Department said about 177 people had now been rescued, while 19 were receiving medical care.
The bridge in Morbi, a town some 200km (120 miles) west of Gujarat’s main city Ahmedabad, was built during British colonial rule in the 19th century and had been closed for renovations for nearly six months before it was reopened to the public last week.
Hundreds of sightseers celebrating Diwali and the Chhath Puja holidays, were on the 230-metre (755-foot) bridge when it collapsed on Sunday, according to local media.
Television footage showed dozens of people clinging onto the cables and twisted remains of the bridge as emergency teams struggled to rescue them.
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