Top South Korean officials said a lack of proper crowd management was likely a factor behind a deadly surge of people that left at least 156 dead, with police faulted for not doing enough to heed warnings that masses were growing to dangerous levels.
Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said at a briefing with international media Tuesday that a lack of a sufficient system on crowd management may have caused the incident, adding a full review was ongoing. In parliament, Minister of Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min, expressed his “sincere apologies to the public over the incident.”
Yoon Hee Keun, commissioner general of the South Korean National Police Agency, said at a separate news briefing that the country’s 112 emergency line received multiple calls warning authorities of the “seriousness at the scene,” as thousands packed the narrow streets of the Itaewon nightlife district in Seoul.
