South Korea pop concert deaths
October 17, 2014
Officials in South Korea said on Friday that at least 14 people were feared dead after a ventilation grate gave way during a pop concert, in Seongnam, southwest of the country's capital, Seoul.
Around 700 people are reported to have gathered to watch popular South Korean girl band 4minute (pictured above), who were performing as part of a local festival.
"They were standing on the ventilation grate to get a better view when it collapsed under their weight," a spokesperson for the local fire services told AFP news agency.
According to reports from the Korean Yonhap news agency and local YTN TV, 10 other spectators were also seriously injured when the victims fell 20 meters into an underground parking area.
Concert organizers had reportedly urged the spectators to move off the grate before it collapsed. The immediate cause of the accident was unknown.
ksb/sb (AFP/AP)