Recently, a tragic event occurred on the streets of Itaewon, Seoul. The streets of Itaewon are well known for their nightlife and restaurants and are a popular place to travel to for festivals and events in South Korea. Halloween festivals occur every year in Itaewon, with people dressing up and walking the streets in their costumes. This year, the anticipation for the Halloween Festival was high as restrictions on masks and pandemic rules were being lifted. It was said that events and hotels were fully booked, which indicated a high volume of people, yet the event that occurred was tragic and led to the loss of friends and loved ones.
It was confirmed that over 150 people died after the Itaewon Halloween festival with around 149 being injured.
An estimation of around 100,000 people was rumoured to be there with police struggling to control crowds. There was a surge of crowds within the narrow streets, which were 4 meters wide. Due to the crowds in the streets, emergency services such as fire services were reportedly unable to reach the alley.
People were looking for their loved ones, with emergency services rushing to the scene. As a response to this tragedy, President Yoon Seok-Youl stated that there would be a state of national mourning until November 5th, with K-pop and other events being postponed and cancelled.
Brands such as Gucci were scheduled to showcase their collection “Cosmogonie” at Gyeongbokgung Palace, located in the north of Seoul, South Korea. The event was cancelled, with Gucci taking their time to send their condolences on Instagram.
We send our deepest condolences to the families and friends of all those who have been affected by the tragedy in Itaewon, Seoul, South Korea.
Gucci
Furthermore, the company SM Entertainment, which represents the groups NCT, Aespa, and Girl’s Generation, cancelled its Halloween staff party. Popular music shows such as M Countdown and Music Bank have also cancelled this week’s performances in order to honor the mourning period.
