Incheon City Confirms Status of 25 Missing Persons Reported in 'Halloween Disaster'... Large-Scale Event Safety Inspection Underway

On the morning of the 30th, rescue workers are conducting rescue operations at the Halloween accident site in Itaewon, Yongsan-gu, Seoul. 2022.10.30 [Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] Incheon City is confirming the whereabouts of 25 Incheon citizens reported missing in connection with the 'Itaewon Halloween Disaster.'

As of 11 a.m. on the 30th, the city reported that 32 missing persons had been reported in relation to this disaster, with 7 located, but the remaining 25 have not been confirmed.

Most of these 25 missing persons are known to be in their teens to twenties.

The city believes there is a possibility that these missing persons are related to the disaster and has requested cooperation from Seoul City and fire authorities to confirm their whereabouts.

A city official stated, "We dispatched one city official to the Seoul situation room to verify the damage to Incheon citizens," adding, "We are also requesting cooperation from Seoul City and others to compare the list of 25 missing persons with the list of deceased from the Itaewon disaster, and we are making efforts to quickly confirm their whereabouts."

The city, considering the possibility of Incheon citizen casualties related to this disaster, established and began operating a casualty and missing persons reporting center (032-440-1880~1) at the disaster situation room today.

Meanwhile, Incheon City held an emergency safety inspection meeting chaired by Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok this morning, with participation from heads of 10 districts and counties, regarding the 'Itaewon Halloween Disaster.'

Mayor Yoo urged a comprehensive inspection to promptly identify citizen damage and prevent safety accidents at large-scale events.

Districts such as Guwol Rodeo Street in Namdong-gu, Bupyeong Cultural Street in Bupyeong-gu, and the area around Juan Station, where Halloween events are expected to be held, will be inspected on-site by each district and county.

The Incheon Office of Education is currently checking whether any students were affected by this disaster.

Additionally, the '2022 Incheon Education Concert' and the '8th Incheon Education Innovation Festival,' scheduled for the 2nd and 5th of next month respectively, are under consideration for cancellation.

Mayor Yoo said, "We will provide maximum support with firefighting equipment and personnel to manage the accident, and to prevent similar incidents in the future, we will deploy personnel at festival and sports event venues to ensure safety without any gaps."

The Incheon Fire Headquarters dispatched 11 vehicles including ambulances and 40 firefighting personnel to the scene yesterday, transporting 14 emergency patients, including 2 foreigners, to hospitals.