[Itaewon Disaster] Seoul City Reports "3,580 Missing Person Reports" Seohyun Oh Visits Site After Returning

3,580 Reports Received via Phone and Visit
Oh Se-hoon Returns at 4 PM and Moves to Itaewon Site
Dedicated Officials Assigned to Bereaved Families of the Deceased

Ahead of Halloween, on the 30th, a massive crush disaster occurred in the Itaewon area. Police forces are controlling the scene and moving busily in the Itaewon area of Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] The number of missing person reports related to the Itaewon crowd crush incident received by the Seoul Metropolitan Government has increased to over 3,500. Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, who was on a business trip in Europe, will return early and visit the accident site.

According to Seoul city on the 30th, as of 2 p.m., the missing person reports for the Itaewon incident totaled 3,580, including 3,494 phone reports and 87 in-person reports.

The city is receiving missing person reports through 20 phone lines including 02-2199-8660, 8664?8678, 5165?5168, and the 120 Dasan Call Center.

Mayor Oh, returning from his overseas business trip, is scheduled to arrive at Incheon Airport around 4 p.m. and head directly to the Itaewon accident site. After visiting the Hamilton Hotel accident site, he plans to visit the main office’s disaster situation room.

The city held a meeting of the Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters on the same day and decided to continue monitoring the condition of the injured twice daily until November 2.

So far, 151 deaths have been confirmed, with the deceased placed in 42 hospitals and funeral homes located in Seoul, Gyeonggi Province, and other areas. There are 24 seriously injured and 79 lightly injured patients receiving treatment at 38 hospitals including Gangnam Seongsim Hospital.

The city will assign dedicated public officials to each bereaved family of the deceased. They plan to identify the personal information and family contact details of the deceased to support the families and are reviewing funeral arrangements with the assigned officials. The number of cremation facility operations will also be increased to a maximum of 60 times per day.

Seoul city explained, "Funeral procedures and support for the bereaved families will be carried out with the utmost respect for their wishes."

Starting the morning of the 31st, a joint memorial altar will be set up at Seoul Plaza. Yongsan-gu will also operate a joint memorial altar at Itaewon Plaza. As the government has designated the national mourning period until November 5, the Seoul city main office and affiliated organizations will fly flags at half-mast early.

About 100 businesses in the Itaewon-ro area will voluntarily suspend operations. In preparation for citizens gathering to enjoy Halloween until the 31st, safety management has been requested for establishments with high customer traffic.

Seoul city has canceled city-hosted events and requested cooperation to reduce festival-type events among those supported by the city.

Seoul city stated, "We will prioritize accident recovery and support for the bereaved families by deploying all city resources, and actively cooperate with the police and related agencies to investigate the cause of the accident."

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