Further details on South Korea's fatal stampede emerge

South Korea is searching for answers after Halloween celebrations in the capital Seoul turned into one of the country’s worst disasters, as authorities investigate how a chaotic stampede could have left at least 153 people dead.

Tens of thousands of costumed partygoers, mainly young people, had come to the popular nightlife neighborhood Itaewon to enjoy the country’s first Halloween celebration since it lifted Covid restrictions such as crowd limits and face mask rules, CNN reports. 

Unfortunately, the joyous event turned into chaos with photos and videos on social media showing huge crowds crammed into a narrow street.

According to the latest figures provided by South Korea’s Yonhap agency, 153 have been confirmed dead with 133 injured. 20 foreign nationals have been confirmed killed, among them citizens from China, Iran, Russia, USA, France, Vietnam, Uzbekistan, Norway, Kazakhstan, Sri Lanka and Austria.

While authorities are still investigating what caused the incident, Choi Seong-bum, chief of the Yongsan-gu Fire Department, said it was a "presumed stampede" and that many people fell, injuring at least 82.

Many still remain missing, with families left anxiously calling hospitals and visiting morgues. Seoul authorities had so far received more than 3,580 missing person reports, said the city government.

The government has launched investigations into what caused such chaos to erupt, but questions are emerging about how such a disaster could have occurred at all.

Eyewitnesses told CNN that they saw no police or officials trying to control the crowd before the crush began. Even after they arrived later in the night, the sense of confusion and panic continued.

Once the disaster started to unfold, a prompt response followed with more than 1,700 emergency response forces being dispatched including 517 firefighters, 1,100 police officials, and about 70 government workers.

Addressing the nation, President Yoon Suk-yeol called for a national period of mourning. "A tragedy that should not have happened occurred in the middle of Seoul last night on Halloween", Yoon said, adding "I pray for those who died in an unexpected accident and hope that the injured will recover quickly".