'Itaewon Tragedy' Death Toll Rises to 158... Additional Death of a 20s Korean Woman

130 Domestic Deaths Funeral, 2 in Process
Among 26 Foreign Deaths, 24 Repatriated to Home Country

On the 13th, volunteers and Yongsan District Office officials are organizing chrysanthemums and memorial messages left by citizens on the sidewalk in front of the Itaewon disaster site in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The death toll from the Itaewon disaster has increased by one to a total of 158.

On the 14th, the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH) announced that as of 11 p.m. on the 13th, the number of deaths from the Itaewon crowd crush disaster increased by one, bringing the total to 158. The additional deceased is a woman in her 20s, a Korean national.

Among the 130 Korean nationals who died, the funerals have been completed for most, with two still in the process of funeral arrangements. Of the 26 foreign nationals who died, 24 have been repatriated to their home countries, while two remain awaiting repatriation. Among the 196 injured, 10 are hospitalized, and the remaining 186 have returned home.

Meanwhile, the government will hold the first meeting of the "Intergovernmental Disaster Safety Management System Reform Task Force (TF)" this week to improve safety management. The government plans to establish a comprehensive plan by the end of the year through this TF.

The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH) stated in a written briefing related to the Itaewon crowd crush disaster that the TF will discuss measures to improve the emergency rescue system, disaster situation reporting and control systems, crowd management safety measures, and responses to new types of disasters.

The TF leader will be Minister of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, Lee Sang-min. Despite calls for his resignation, Minister Lee has expressed his intention to focus on managing the situation immediately. He presided over the first meeting of the "Intergovernmental Special Team (TF) for Preventing Multi-Dense Crowd Accidents" on the 2nd, the safety measures meeting with related ministries on the 4th, and the public-private joint meeting for crowd accident prevention management on the 10th.

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