Itaewon Disaster 112 First Report at 6 AM... On-Site Response After 10 AM (Comprehensive)

Police: "Multiple cases from 9 AM, over 100 cases after 10:15 AM"
Immediate response avoided regarding actions after 6 PM report
On criticism of insufficient traffic control, "Physical traffic volume was excessive"
Delay in using disaster alerts... Ministry of the Interior and Safety "There is regret"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] It has been revealed that reports to the police began at 6 p.m. on the 29th, the day the Itaewon crowd crush disaster occurred. Response at the accident site by 119 (emergency services) started only after 10:15 p.m., and there have been criticisms that traffic control was inadequate.

At the Itaewon accident briefing held by the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters on the 1st, Hwang Chang-seon, the Police Agency’s Public Safety Situation Manager, said, "There was a surge in 112 emergency calls that day, and from 6 p.m., one call was received, which was generally a tolerable inconvenience report. However, by 9 p.m., it seems there were reports serious enough to be considered critical."

Hwang explained, "There were multiple reports after 9 p.m., one hour before the fire station received calls, and from 10:15 p.m., about 100 calls flooded in. The crowd gathered in varying amounts and speeds depending on the time."

The first report to the 119 situation room was received at 10:15 p.m. The Yongsan 119 rescue team first arrived at 10:41 p.m. Although traffic inconvenience reports started coming in from 6 p.m., the police took no action for four hours. Regarding police actions after the 6 p.m. reports, Hwang said, "We are conducting an internal investigation, so it is difficult to provide specific details. We are verifying facts one by one with the officers on site."

Despite police reports on the day of the accident about people entering the roads and traffic inconveniences due to the crowd, there were criticisms that traffic control was not properly implemented. In response, Hwang said, "A significant portion of this public safety measure was related to traffic. About 70-80% of the reports received by 112 that day were about traffic. There was even a report of people unable to leave a parking lot for an hour."

He added, "Itaewon and its vicinity, including Samgakji and other downtown areas, had large rallies, which I think contributed to the increased congestion. Traffic control is something the police can enforce as needed, but I believe the physical volume of traffic at that time was somewhat excessive to take action. Immediately after the incident, it was difficult for ambulances to get through, so the first step was to gather patrol cars from nearby police stations to secure ambulance routes."

On the 1st, the Segye Food Culture Street behind the Hamilton Hotel in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, is being restricted from entry. A total of 307 casualties occurred, including 156 deaths and 151 injuries, due to a crush disaster that happened here last weekend. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

The police initially announced they would deploy over 200 officers in Itaewon in preparation for the Halloween crowd but only deployed 137, which has also become a point of controversy. Hwang explained, "The 200 or more refers to the total mobilized personnel." He added, "The number of officers deployed varies on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Saturday was considered the peak, so a maximum of 137 officers were deployed to the fullest extent. The decision on personnel deployment is the responsibility of the police chief, who makes the judgment after consulting with staff."

Hwang said, "As I mentioned before, we did not anticipate such a large-scale incident. Crime rates are high every year, and the police’s basic duties focus on crime and traffic disorder enforcement, so the personnel allocation was focused on those areas, which I regret somewhat."

Regarding conflicting statements between the Police Agency and Seoul Metro about the request for non-stop passage through Itaewon Station, Hwang clarified, "According to the Yongsan Police Station situation room chief who made the call, they were managing the situation near Itaewon Station and requested the station chief around 11:38 p.m. to allow non-stop passage. Seoul Metro said they received contact from the police around 11:11 p.m. after the incident. The police confirmed they made two requests: one at 10:38 p.m. before the incident and another at 11:11 p.m. immediately after, once via mobile phone and once via office landline."

Regarding criticism that disaster text messages were delayed in being used for the Itaewon accident, Kim Seong-ho, head of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, said, "I believe disaster text messages are crucial for actively informing the public about risks and safety measures during disasters. I regret that this was not well executed this time. Local governments are responsible for assessing the situation and issuing such messages, but overlapping circumstances caused some delay in their use."

It was also revealed that the north side pub terrace of the Hamilton Hotel main building was illegally expanded, narrowing the passageway. Hwang responded, "This could violate road laws or building regulations. The police investigation headquarters is monitoring various aspects broadly without focusing on one place and is verifying facts step by step."

Regarding the use of the term "deceased" at the joint memorial altar for the Itaewon accident, the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters explained that since responsibility has not been clearly determined, a neutral term was used. Kim said, "We use terms like victim or casualty when the perpetrator’s responsibility is clear, but currently, the situation has not been objectively confirmed or clarified. Therefore, we use neutral terms such as deceased or casualties."

According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, as of 11 a.m. that day, the death toll from the Itaewon crowd crush was 156 (including 26 foreigners), and the number of injured was 151, including 29 seriously injured.

The government plans to identify the cause of the accident and establish safety management measures for events without organizers like this one to prevent recurrence. From the 3rd, a joint government inspection of local festivals will be conducted to prevent similar accidents. Dedicated officials have been assigned one-on-one to bereaved families, and funeral expenses will be paid as quickly as possible through the local governments of the families’ residences.

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