Huge crowd at South Korea fireworks amid safety concern after deadly 2022 crush

seoul, southbound korea — 

A ample fireworks festival successful South Korea drew a monolithic assemblage Saturday, snarling postulation done its engaged capital, prompting constabulary to deploy 2,400 officers and sending edifice country rates supra $7,400.

The fashionable yearly lawsuit has taken connected a superior nationalist information magnitude arsenic representation is inactive caller of a Halloween nighttime catastrophe 2 years agone that killed 159 mostly young radical successful a crush of assemblage packed successful a dense amusement district.

Many of the much than 1 cardinal spectators who were expected to ticker the 90-minute amusement were camping retired since midnight to unafraid a spot with a presumption of the lawsuit scheduled to commencement astatine 7:20 p.m. (1020 GMT) implicit the Han River that runs done Seoul.

Oh Soo-taek, 64, who said helium has been coming to the festival with his woman for 3 years, recovered the spot already crowded erstwhile they got determination astatine 2 p.m. but said it was breathtaking to beryllium portion of an lawsuit bringing truthful galore families and friends together.

"We had that large mishap 2 years agone truthful it's truthful bully to spot the organizers and the constabulary and everyone helping each different and keeping order."

Many restaurants, bars and edifice rooms connected Yeouido land connected the stream and connected its banks with a presumption of the fireworks by teams from Japan, South Korea and the United States had been booked days ahead.

High-floor suites astatine 1 luxury edifice connected Yeouido were sold retired Saturday astatine astir treble the mean rate, contempt the little than cleanable presumption of the fireworks they offered, a preservation authoritative said.

The lawsuit is hosted by the Hanwha conglomerate, which has grown from a dynamite shaper to a planetary defence contractor. Its squad participates successful a fireworks show arsenic portion of the festival.

Authorities took nary chances connected security, arsenic spectators poured into an country the size of respective metropolis blocks connected and adjacent Yeouido, the country's main fiscal halfway and a dense commercialized and residential district.

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo directed police, exigency services and the information and wellness ministries to beryllium connected afloat alert with a absorption connected assemblage power and besides asked for spectator practice to guarantee order.

The precaution comes arsenic the state inactive grapples with the 2022 Halloween catastrophe successful Seoul's Itaewon nightlife territory blamed connected failed assemblage control.

On Monday, the constabulary main of that territory was convicted of negligence and sentenced to 3 years successful situation successful the archetypal specified verdict against a elder nationalist authoritative implicit the disaster.