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Seoul Halloween Crush

Aggelos

Member
An absolute tragedy, with so many people gathering in such a tight space.
The situation was totally out of control.


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Tams

Member
What I mean is, there should be some attempt kill the crowd before it can even begin. From what I understand people just kept arriving even as all this was happening. I've seen a couple vids of people just turning up with bodies all over place and not having a clue what just occurred. So even with SNS people were still pretty disconnected from the situation. So maybe something like cancelling trains and literally stopping people coming to the area. I have been in a few hairy situations in Japan with crowds but not at the event/location itself but when everyone tries to go home all at the same time and there's only one station, or reversely you just get off the train and are forced out the station by people lol. Oddly enough that was in Shin Okubo Station on a Friday night once.

I think we're in agreement. Though in Japan, as I said, I've only seen the police and other authorities handle it quite well. In big cities they'll even alter the train schedules to funnel to people in certain directions (not just Japan).

Then again, I rarely go out out in Japan, and when I do I opt for the staying out all night and grabbing a Sukiya or something for breakfast on the way home, so I miss all the drunken people going home.
 

darrylgorn

Member
There need to be more studies that look into the deterministic factors at play in something like this. It reminds me of bridge design and how some can be broken under a very specific set of circumstances.
 

RJMacready73

Simps for Amouranth
People are so fucking stupid, an absolute tragedy that couldve been avoided if human beings would stop and think for 2 fucking seconds when seeing a massive crowd of people, turn the fuck around instead of joining the throng and they just kept going. It's not like it's a concert or football game where crowd management and control is factored into the event, it's bloody winding streets in an urban environment, anyone with half a wit would've got off the subway walked upstairs seen the massive crowds and went nope, back downstairs and get the next train out or at least turned around and left the area
 

Sybrix

Member
I struggle to understand how this sort of incident can occur.

If there is an obvious overflow of people in a concentrated area, your turn around and go the opposite way however here it seems that 100s and 100s of people kept piling into the same tiny area filling it up to the point people were trampled to the ground and then even more people plied in where they were crushed.

Those videos are horrific, they show layers and layers of people in an alleyway.......... how tf does is it get like that!?
 

Porcile

Member
Young people in places like Korea and Japan especially in the major cities pretty much grow up in a super conservative group think environment. They aren't good at saying no and turning around, going against the groupthink. FOMO is strong here Especially if they're with their buddies and it's a kind of social event/gathering like this. For most people, as sad as it is, shopping, partying, drinking are one of the only ways they know how to let loose.
 

Tams

Member
There need to be more studies that look into the deterministic factors at play in something like this. It reminds me of bridge design and how some can be broken under a very specific set of circumstances.
My mum studied it decades ago, but I believe the theory hasn't changed much.

In short; crowds are like a new entity. People not only behave differently than normal in one, but collectively people start to act live one entity. This can lead crowds to do things that no individual in them may even consider doing on their own and it doesn't have to be of benefit to any one person in the crowd, or even the crowd.

This is why you get riots, lynch mobs, and crushes like this.
 

G-Bus

Banned
This is terrifying.

I remember being downtown Vancouver when Canada won the gold medal in hockey and it was bonkers. Literally sardined in the crowd at times and it made me a little uneasy. Like someone else said you end up going with the flow of people because you can't do much else. Can't imagine fighting it.
 
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Tams

Member
I struggle to understand how this sort of incident can occur.

If there is an obvious overflow of people in a concentrated area, your turn around and go the opposite way however here it seems that 100s and 100s of people kept piling into the same tiny area filling it up to the point people were trampled to the ground and then even more people plied in where they were crushed.

Those videos are horrific, they show layers and layers of people in an alleyway.......... how tf does is it get like that!?

Crowd mentality, but also once you're in it, there's really nowhere to go for most people. If you're quite deep in it then going against the flow is fine if it's just you, but if enough people get the same idea, then it turns into chaos very quickly. The best that can happen is that someone is controlling the exits and keeps people moving out in a controlled fashion.

But once the panic sets in, it's just a downward spiral until enough escape or die to relieve the pressure.

Asa Porcile Porcile mentioned, I don't think the collective mentality of Asian countries helps. It's by no means unique to them; Hillsborough is probably one of the most infamous examples in the West.
 
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Aggelos

Member
I struggle to understand how this sort of incident can occur.

This is moments before disaster strikes. It's clear that it is a matter of minutes (if not seconds) before people are going to get crushed.






And here is an overview of the out-of-control situation.








I think the above videos shed some light on how an incident like this can occur.
 

Porcile

Member
Go anywhere in Tokyo on a weekend and you'll see on a tiny scale everywhere why this kind of thing can so easily happen at any time. People start queuing for something, and even if it would be quicker and probably just as good to simply back out of the queue and go somewhere else, people stay in the queue to the bitter end lol. Doesn't matter if it's McDonald's or some Michelin star place.

In this case, even though it must have been pretty obvious to anyone who had any basic knowledge about this area the place was going to be absolutely rammed and perhaps better to stay away and go somewhere else, they still went.
 

vpance

Member
There need to be more studies that look into the deterministic factors at play in something like this. It reminds me of bridge design and how some can be broken under a very specific set of circumstances.

The streets are very cramped in Itaewon. Not ideal at all for large crowds.
 
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Tams

Member
Well, predictably (and rightly), Japanese police in Tokyo are stepping up edit: had good crowd control (not clear if this was before or after what happened last night).





I won't link it, but there's a livestream of Shibuya Crossing by ANN (Japanese news channel). Kind of inappropriately playing off this tragedy as it isn't for people to 'check how busy it is'. It's all to do with getting that viewership and showing 'how great our authorities are'.
 
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This sort of thing has happened quite a few times at large gatherings - concerts etc.

As someone who hates crowds, just watching that *without* knowing the outcome is nightmare fuel to me. I can't imagine.
 
RIP to all those who lost their lives.

I don't remember when or what occasion, but I've been in something similar where I was basically carried by the flow of the crowd and can't really move l. it definitely triggered some sort of phobia in me. this is like 100 times worse than what I had experienced too.

I think about 29 years ago in Hong Kong, something similar happened at the Lan Keai Fon area. 21 dead from it, and Hong Kong had been enforcing enter restrictions according to the number of people in there during large events/holidays.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lan_Kwai_Fong
 

GloveSlap

Member
This is some of the tightest people packing i've seen since that old Station night club fire video. So tight that rescuers are struggling to pull people out from the front.
 

Stinkbug

Neo Member
Not that it would make it any better but I really hope the reason isn't as dumb as people trying to see a celebrity.



That would have caused more panic and there would be even more deaths. Unless that was sarcasm about how idiotic the Indonesian police were firing tear gas at the soccer fans that led to 125 deaths in the surge it caused?

...

Wait, you're serious?!

We learnt (well, most police forces did) years ago that scaring densely packed crowds is the worst thing you can do, even if they are rioting.

I mean, you did hear about what happened in Indonesia this very month?


That said, I wouldn't be surprised if the police are found to have not initially handled this very well in terms of crowd management. It wouldn't exactly be out of character for South Korea (see Sewol where the reaction was eventually incredible, but the preventative measure and a lot of the initial reaction was poor).

True. Initially I'd just seen "stampede", but knowing it was a dense crowd, it's good they didn't use tear gas.
 
I am at a loss for words...Why? Just why would you see such an insane human wave and decide to add to the pile? What a tragedy!

One of the short clips shows dead people, with horrible expressions on their contorted faces, their bodies squeezed like lemons...An image seared into my brain, no doubt.

My heart goes to the families and friends of those who passed away. I can only imagine how scary the last instants must have been...

I have always shunned gatherings, suffering from acute sociophobia, and this has formed another layer of Nope! 😟😟😟
 
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zombrex

Member
People are so fucking stupid, an absolute tragedy that couldve been avoided if human beings would stop and think for 2 fucking seconds when seeing a massive crowd of people, turn the fuck around instead of joining the throng and they just kept going. It's not like it's a concert or football game where crowd management and control is factored into the event, it's bloody winding streets in an urban environment, anyone with half a wit would've got off the subway walked upstairs seen the massive crowds and went nope, back downstairs and get the next train out or at least turned around and left the area
Shows the power of group mentality. People continued piling in even when it was obviously overcrowded and dangerous.

Japan had a similar crush many years back.
It's why you now see very strict crowd control in Japan, even at seemingly innocuous events.

 
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Aggelos

Member



"The National Police Agency said there were at least 154 deaths, with more fatalities expected. The known deaths consisted of 97 females and 56 males. Four victims were teenagers, 95 people were in their twenties, 32 people in their thirties, nine in their forties, and 13 have yet to be identified. Twenty-six foreigners were among the dead.
At least 133 others were confirmed injured, including 24 in serious condition. The National Fire Agency and Ministry of the Interior and Safety had said that nearly 100 people were injured, with 50 receiving medical attention for cardiac arrests.
By the afternoon of 30 October, about 90 percent of the victims had been identified. The remaining 10 percent (12 bodies) were of local teens or foreign nationals."
 
The organisers of this and the police will have a lot to answer for here. Usually when this sort of thing happens it is the police or organisers ushering people the wrong way. Rest in peace to those unfortunate souls who lost their lives on a night out.

There was no organizer and why would police have to answer? People decided to rush towards 1 spot because they thought someone famous showed up
 

Tams

Member
There was no organizer and why would police have to answer? People decided to rush towards 1 spot because they thought someone famous showed up
Actually, if it turns out they didn't assess the situation properly (which is looking increasingly likely - there's even been an admission of failings), then yes they do.

It's their job to maintain public order, whether that's organised or not.
 

Porcile

Member
While I agree the sensible decision for people would've been to simply not even attempt to get to the area, it does sound like communication about what was happening at ground level was foggy at best. People who arrived at that time just got sucked into the crowd as soon as they got off the train or the bus, whether they really wanted to be part of it or not. It is one of those freakish events where everything that could have possibly gone wrong did go wrong with tragic consequences.
 

SlimySnake

Flashless at the Golden Globes
Crowd is too packed. This is on the police.

Timesquare is packed on New Year's eve but its never this packed.
 
Condolences to the families of the deceased.
City logistics should implement more crowd control measures to prevent events like these going forward.
 
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vpance

Member
Apparently not many police there this year to control the crowds, which was actually smaller than last year.
 

GymWolf

Member
Imagine being the parent who receive a call saying "your son died crushed by other people".

Not sure why this make me immensely furious, human beings literally crushing other human beings for no worthy reason.
 
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SafeOrAlone

Banned
And did you guys see the Morbi bridge collapse in India? So many tragedies like this lately. Then there was the recent soccer game, where tear gas was sprayed and people trampled each other.

But RIP to these victims. Tragic.
 

pramod

Banned
My friend in Korea used to go to these annual Halloween parties. It's basically a huge pick-up fest. Imagine dying just to get hit on by random dudes dressed up in dumb costumes.
 

Umbasaborne

Banned
People forget that humans are animals, just as any other creature on this planet. We are just as capable as entering fight or flight mode in large groups and stampeding over eachother, just as other heard animals do when they get panicked. This was sensless, and unneccessary. Who ever organized this needs to rot in prison for the rest of their life. Folks don’t realize that when you’re in fight or flight, your in survival mode, you dont care if others die so long as you live. So take a few thousand people who feel like. Put them a small alleyway, and this is what happens
 
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