At least nine people died and some 20 were injured in a stampede in Guatemala early Thursday as the country celebrated its independence, according to firefighters.
The victims apparently died in a crush of people who were trying to enter an outdoor music concert.
Amilcar Rivas, Quetzaltenango city manager, said that event organizers did not have a grip on security and crowd control. He said the event did have a permit.
Quetzaltenango, Guatemala’s second largest city, is about 125 miles (200 kms) west of Guatemala City.
Guatemala is celebrating Thursday 201 years of independence from Spain.
