[Itaewon Tragedy] Yoon Orders 'National Mourning Period and Early Flag Lowering at Government Offices'... "A Tragedy That Should Never Have Happened"

Following consecutive dawn inspections, emergency national address announced... "Truly devastating"

Ahead of Halloween, President Yoon Seok-yeol is inspecting the site in the Itaewon area of Yongsan-gu, Seoul, where a large-scale crush disaster occurred on the 30th./Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Baek Kyunghwan] President Yoon Suk-yeol on the 30th described the 'Itaewon tragedy' as "truly devastating" and declared a national mourning period until the accident recovery is completed. President Yoon visited the site to assess the situation and ordered all government ministries and public offices to immediately fly flags at half-mast.

At around 9:50 a.m. that day, President Yoon delivered a national address from the briefing room on the first floor of the Yongsan Presidential Office, saying, "It is truly devastating," and "A tragedy and disaster that should never have happened occurred in the heart of Seoul last night during Halloween."

He continued, "I pray for the souls of those who lost their lives in this unexpected accident and wish a speedy recovery for the injured," adding, "I offer my deepest condolences to the bereaved families who have lost precious lives. As the president responsible for the lives and safety of the people, my heart is heavy and it is difficult to contain my sorrow."

In particular, President Yoon stated, "The government will designate today as the start of the national mourning period until the accident recovery is concluded, and will prioritize accident recovery and follow-up measures as the top national agenda." Specifically, funeral support and the full mobilization of available emergency medical systems will be ensured for prompt medical assistance to the injured, while relevant officials will be matched one-on-one to provide necessary measures and support.

Along with this, President Yoon said, "We will thoroughly investigate the cause of the accident and fundamentally improve measures to prevent the recurrence of similar incidents," and "The Ministry of the Interior and Safety and related ministries will conduct urgent inspections of local festivals."

Meanwhile, after delivering the address, President Yoon immediately visited the Itaewon tragedy site without a Q&A session. He then proceeded to the Accident Recovery Headquarters set up in the situation room of the Gwanghwamun Government Seoul Office Building to preside over a countermeasure meeting.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.