[News Terms] The 'Apsa (Crushing Death)' That Caused the Itaewon Tragedy... Loss of Consciousness in 3 Minutes, Cardiac Arrest After 10 Minutes

Cause of Death in Itaewon Accident Mostly Estimated as Crushing
Trauma Causing Cardiac Arrest Due to Excessive Pressure on Chest and Airway

In the early morning of the 30th, 119 rescue workers dispatched to the scene are transporting the injured from the Itaewon crush accident to the hospital. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Sumi] The main cause of death for the large number of casualties in the Itaewon disaster is known to be mostly crushing, which led to asphyxiation or damage to abdominal organs.

The incident occurred on the night of the 29th in an alley next to the Hamilton Hotel in Itaewon-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul. At the time, with Halloween approaching, tens of thousands of people crowded into the narrow alley at once, resulting in over 200 citizens being killed or injured. According to the fire department as of 9 a.m. on the 30th, 151 people had died and 82 were injured, totaling 233 casualties.

The primary cause of death is presumed to be crushing. Crushing is a type of trauma where excessive pressure is applied to the chest and airway, leading to cardiac arrest and death.

When a person is pressed under an enormous weight, the expansion of the thorax is hindered, causing respiratory failure and preventing oxygen supply to the entire body, which can result in cardiac arrest. Additionally, if excessive pressure compresses the chest or abdomen, damage to the heart, lungs, and organs can occur, causing air or blood to accumulate in the chest and bleeding in the abdominal cavity, which can lead to death.

Experts believe that in this particular incident, the large number of crushing casualties resulted from a massive crowd gathering in one place. Professor Lim Yong-su of the Department of Emergency Medicine at Gachon University Gil Medical Center said in an interview with SBS on the 30th, "It is expected that sudden and severe pressure and asphyxiation occurred due to a large number of people in a very narrow space," adding, "this likely caused severe compression or breathing obstruction in the chest or airway, resulting in many cardiac arrest victims in a short time."

In fact, the time from respiratory distress to loss of consciousness or death is known not to be very long. Professor Lim explained, "It varies depending on the person and situation, but generally, consciousness is lost about 3 to 5 minutes after breathing completely stops, and cardiac arrest can occur after about 10 minutes."

If a crushing accident occurs, the first emergency measure to take is cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Professor Lim said, "The priority is to remove the person from the asphyxiating situation," but cautioned, "However, forcibly rescuing or moving the patient at this time can cause secondary injuries, so care must be taken."

He continued, "If breathing is checked and cardiac arrest is recognized, immediately call 119 and perform CPR right away to facilitate the patient's breathing as quickly as possible." This is because whether CPR is performed within 5 to 6 minutes after cardiac arrest greatly affects the chance of regaining consciousness. He added, "If the patient is not in cardiac arrest, maintain the airway and monitor breathing, providing artificial respiration if necessary while waiting for the 119 emergency team."

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