A survivor of a crowd crush that killed more than 150 partygoers in the South Korean capital of Seoul has blamed the ineffective crowd controls for his friend's death.
Australian Nathan Taverniti, 24, said he's still grappling with emotional shock after one of his friends died during the Halloween tragedy at the nightlife district of Itaewon.
In the first unmasked event since the Covid-19 pandemic broke event, hundreds of excited partygoers flocked to the area.
The path became clogged by a huge wave of people moving between venues and people soon began falling and toppling over one another like dominoes, according to witnesses, before suffocating to death.
"I was there at the front [of the crowd], at a T-intersection. There were already so many people in front of me.
"A group of girls fell down and a group of people were trying to help them up. But there were waves of people coming in from both sides," the Australian tourist said in a TikTok video which has since been deleted.
He continued: "I turned around and told the crowd, you can’t come this way, people are dying, because I already knew how bad it was and people were being so rude and I had to tell them you can’t come this way."
Some experts say it should have been an obvious decision for authorities to temporarily block some of the neighbourhoods notoriously narrow lanes and hills.
"If the government knows that there were going to be that many people there, and there is going to be road blockages, there should be enough police and emergency services already there on standby," Taverniti said.
He thought he saw some of his friends' hands among the people who were piling up, so he tried to grab them, but had to let go after being crushed by the enormous weight of other people who were losing balance.
Taverniti said he shouted to the bars and clubs to open their doors to let some people in to ease the crowd, but that nobody listened.
It took him a few hours until he saw his friend and she was dead, he said breaking down in tears.
Sydney film production assistant Grace Rached's family said of her death: “We are missing our gorgeous angel Grace, who lit up the room with her infectious smile."
At least 153 people died and 82 were injured after becoming trapped in the narrow streets. Among them were 19 foreign nationals from countries including the United States, Australia, China, Iran, Norway and Uzbekistan.
Two of Mr Taverniti's friends are in hospital, so he plans to stay in Seoul for a bit longer to ensure their steady recovery.
"And nobody wanted to help me," he said, breaking down in sobs. Next week would have been her birthday.
"I believe 100% that this incident is a result of the government's mismanagement and the lack of ability because I have known that Halloween event has always been this big in Itaewon," he added.
