At least 146 dead after South Korea crowd surge during Halloween festivities, officials say

At least 146 people were killed and 150 hurt in a chaotic stampede in South Korea after thousands gathered in the night-life area of the capital, Seoul, to celebrate Halloween.

Choi Seong-beom, chief of Seoul’s Yongsan fire department, said the death toll could grow as emergency workers were continuing to transport the injured to hospitals across Seoul following the stampede on Saturday night.

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The incident took place at about 10:20 p.m. after a large crowd began pushing forward in a narrow alley near Hamilton Hotel, a major party spot in Seoul.

“A number of people fell during a Halloween festival, and we have a large number of casualties,” Choi Cheon-sik from the National Fire Agency said. Many of those killed were at a nearby nightclub, he said.

146 people have been reported killed and at least 150 others were injured in a deadly stampede in Seoul’s Itaewon district, after huge crowds of people gathered for Halloween parties, according to fire authorities.  (Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)

Emergency services carry injured people after a stampede on October 30, 2022 in Seoul, South Korea. (Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)

More than 400 emergency workers and 140 rescue vehicles were deployed to treat the injured, Cheon-sik added.

Police confirmed that dozens of people were given cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on the streets, while others were taken to nearby hospitals.

“The area is still chaotic, so we are still trying to figure out the exact number of people injured,” said Moon Hyun-joo, another official at the National Fire Agency.

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Authorities said they are still investigating the exact cause of the incident.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this post.

Sarah Rumpf is a Fox News Digital Production Assistant. You can reach her on Twitter at @rumpfsarahc