On Sunday, an uneventful incident took place where at least 153 people were found dead in the crowd crush of the Halloween procession in Seoul.
According to NBC News, among the dead people were two U.S. college students who also got crushed in the Halloween crowd. They were studying abroad and were the only identified Americans in the sudden mishap.
One of the two American students was Anne Gieske, who was studying nursing and was in her third year at Kentucky University. The girl was identified by her University president, who confirmed the news of her passing away on Friday at the crowded Halloween show on the streets. The president, named Elli Capilouto, has disclosed the news to her school.
Capilouto has stated that Anne Gieske was studying in the semester in South Korea, and Eli is utterly shocked as she imagines how a girl full of life is no more.
The other American that had been identified as dead in the incident was Steven Blesi, who was only 20 years old, and he was found pressed dead against the other dead bodies that had been found in the crowd.
Blesi was a bright student who came from Marietta, Georgia, to study business and the Korean language during the fall semester.
Blesi’s father was devastated as he received the news of his son’s death in the crowded Halloween road crash. The New York Times stated that, his father said that he went to South Korea to study and was enjoying his semester break with his friends that he made in South Korea.
Blesi’s father also said that his son was having a great time in South Korea, and he made a lot of new friends there. Blesi’s father added that Blesi was excited about the Halloween celebration, but they never thought that this incident was going to take his son’s life. He also wishes that if he could take his son’s place, then he would bring his son back to life.
Anne Gieske’s father, Dan, too, spoke to the media. He said that the family of Gieske is completely devastated by her death, but they also require privacy to mourn their loss.
Eli Capilouto added that two other students of Kentucky students and a professor of the school were also present at the Halloween of Seoul, but they are safe and alright.
If the crowd was estimated beforehand and such precautions like assigning extra forces by police had been done before the party, then such an uneventful incident wouldn’t have taken place, and the families of the bereaved would not suffer such loss, said Blesi’s father.
The Seoul Halloween party witnessed a crowd of over 1,00,000 people. There were no proper crowd control facilities at the spot; the police were fewer in number to take control of the sudden rush.
People from all over came to the mass Halloween party. Collegegoers, school students, and pub-goers were among the people to attend the Halloween crush, and 153 among them lost their lives in Seoul.
The South Korean Police force is being questioned by the authority and the families of the dead ones for their negligence.
