Shanghai stampede kills 36, injures 47
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E-mail Shanghai Daily, January 1, 2015
At least 36 people were killed in a stampede along the historic Bund area as huge crowds of revelers gathered to watch the countdown to the New Year, the Shanghai government said today.
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Relatives of the injured are all in tears at the Shanghai No. 1 People's Hospital. |
The stampede, which occurred about 11:35pm in Chen Yi Square across from the Peace Hotel, left 36 people dead and 47 injured, the city government information office said on its Weibo site.
The injured were sent to several hospitals for treatment, including Changzheng Hospital, the Shanghai No. 1 People's Hospital, Ruijin Hospital and Huangpu District Central Hospital. By 8am, 46 people were still in hospital. Among them, 14 were seriously injured. An investigation has begun into the cause of the tragedy.
The stampede began when a large number of people tried to move up to the riverfront esplanade were blocked, according to witnesses. Those who fell were trampled on by others in panic.
“We were pushed forward by a huge crowd behind us,” a witness surnamed Zong from Xiamen told Shanghai Daily. “We didn’t want to move forward toward the riverfront area, but we had no choice. Suddenly a crowd from the front began to push us back. We fell down and we were among layers of people buried.”
He added: “I only managed to keep my head above the pile of bodies, and I began to feel numbness in my legs. Several minutes later, police pulled us off one another, one by one. It was so terrible. A friend of mine went missing.”
Zong said he kept trying to phone his friend and only managed to find out his fate at around 1:13am, when a nurse picked up the call and told him his friend was in Changzhen Hospital.
Standing grimly outside the emergency room today, Zong said, “I am still waiting for more information. They told me he was in serious condition. I am afraid he may have died.”
Yu Ping, another eyewitness, told Shanghai Daily, “We just were passing by the square. There was a huge crowd, and we were pushed forward and didn’t know where to go. Police ordered us to move back, but we were unable to move. That lasted for about 10 minutes. Some girls, including my friend Luo Dali, fainted and fell on the ground. I tried to protect her head from the stampede. It was an unbelievable nightmare. We managed to get a policeman to help us call an ambulance.”
Luo remains in serious condition at Shanghai No. 1 People's Hospital. Her parents, who live in Anhui Province, were notified and are en route to Shanghai.
One photo from the scene shared on Weibo showed at least one person doing chest compressions on a shirtless man, while several other people lay on the ground nearby, amid debris. Another photo showed the area ringed by police.
Twenty-eight people were sent to Shanghai No. 1 People's Hospital, according to Xia Shujie, deputy director of the hospital. Most of the injured had suffered serious suffocation.
Ten injured were hospitalized in Ruijin Hospital, many with bone fractures, personnel there said. Some were suffering psychological trauma. Twenty-six were sent to Changzheng Hospital.
Changzheng and the Shanghai No. 1 People's hospitals stopped taking emergency patients today, redirecting them to other medical facilities.
Families of victims still unidentified are asked to register their information with authorities.
President Xi Jinping issued a call to spare no efforts in treating those injured in the stampede. He also urged a speedy and thorough investigation into the cause of the stampede.
Chen Yi Square is near the Bund Origin area, where a countdown for the New Year was being held.
For the past three years, the countdown show was held in an open area of the Bund. However, this year it was moved to the Bund Origin, a relatively enclosed area, due to safety concerns.
About 2,000 visitors were expected to watch the show, according to previous reports.
Last year, officials were caught off-guard when nearly 300,000 people turned up for the New Year countdown at the Bund, which led to traffic chaos.
The revised location was chosen "in order to improve traffic flow," the Huangpu District government said earlier.
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