"Be Careful" Japan Spends 'Halloween Day' Under Alert, Ends Without Major Incident

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] "Do not stop or run, just follow the person in front of you slowly."

On October 31st, Halloween Day, the bustling district of Shibuya in Tokyo, Japan was crowded with young people. As the streets became so packed that movement was difficult, the so-called "DJ Police," the officers responsible for maintaining order, shouted through loudspeakers. Local foreign media including Jiji Press reported on the 1st that Japanese police and administrative authorities, as well as visitors, were on high alert after witnessing the Itaewon crowd crush disaster in Korea.

According to reports, Shibuya Ward had requested people to refrain from visiting during Halloween for the past two years due to COVID-19. This year, they planned to welcome Halloween without issuing such messages for the first time in three years. However, after seeing the accident in Korea, they hurriedly issued a message on the afternoon of the 31st asking people to refrain from visiting, expressing concern that a similar accident might occur. Jiji Press described this as an "unprecedented response."

Police were deployed throughout Shibuya. The Metropolitan Police Department stationed uniformed officers and riot police in narrow alleys and hilly streets to manage crowds by continuously asking people to keep moving if congestion or photo-taking caused delays. NHK reported, "The Metropolitan Police Department guided pedestrians to avoid the central area as much as possible, fearing that people gathering in one place could cause a standstill."

The reason Japan was so cautious is that they had previously experienced dangerous crowding in places like Shibuya. Shibuya, like Itaewon, has many narrow streets and before COVID-19, large crowds gathered for Halloween. However, unlike Korea, where events were organized by specific groups, the crowds in Shibuya formed spontaneously, making it difficult for local merchants to address the issue, NHK reported.

Visitors to Shibuya that day said they wanted to enjoy the event within a safe range. A teenage boy dressed as a maid said, "I thought it was a little scary, but my desire to enjoy Halloween was stronger." A man in his 30s dressed as a ghost said, "I think people are coming out after holding back due to COVID-19," and said he planned to enjoy safely.

Aside from Shibuya, Asahi Shimbun reported that measures were taken in Osaka, Nagoya, and Fukuoka in preparation for crowds. Osaka deployed up to 200 police officers daily from the 29th of last month and increased riot police on the 31st after the Itaewon disaster. Nagoya closed major commercial facilities on the 31st, and access to parks in Tenjin, downtown Fukuoka, was restricted.

On the morning of November 1st, after Halloween Day, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department announced, "We completed security without major problems." They explained that although the flow of people stopped near the central area around 7 p.m. the previous day and there was some disturbance such as drones (unmanned aerial vehicles) flying nearby, there were no major issues.

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