11 Reports Received 4 Hours Before Itaewon Tragedy
Only 4 On-Site Responses... No Significant Action Taken
Investigation Launched... Could Lead to Criminal Charges
On the morning of the 31st, police officers are controlling access to Itaewon World Food Culture Street in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]
[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Jo] This is the content of a 112 emergency call the police received at 9:10 p.m. on the 29th of last month, one hour before the Itaewon tragedy occurred. The caller repeatedly warned of the possibility of people being crushed to death, but it was confirmed on the 1st that the police ultimately closed the case without even visiting the scene. A National Police Agency official held a press briefing at the police agency in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul that afternoon and disclosed the details of the calls made on the day of the tragedy, including reports of crushing.
According to the police, on the day of the tragedy, from around 6 p.m., a total of 11 calls reporting phrases like "It’s so creepy" and "People are going to be crushed to death" were received through 112. Among these, it was confirmed that the police dispatched officers to the scene for only 4 calls. Even these responses were made more than an hour before the large-scale crushing accident occurred at 10:15 p.m., and after that, no measures other than telephone consultations were taken. The 4 dispatched calls were also when the crowd had decreased, reducing the risk of accidents, and after dispersing the gathered crowd, the situation was closed.
According to the police 112 call manual, repeated calls from the same phone number or repeated calls from the same location require police officers to visit the scene and respond after direct confirmation. A National Police Agency official said, "When citizens report, the 112 situation room at the provincial police agency receives the call and then dispatches the nearest local police station officers or detectives," adding, "It is necessary to check how the situation was actually handled on site." The official also said regarding the on-site actions for the 4 dispatched calls, "It falls within the scope of the internal investigation to determine on what criteria the seriousness was judged and the case was closed."
The police said that among the 11 calls where the caller directly used the term "crushing," many were classified as Code 2. Code 2 refers to cases where there is a potential risk to life or body or where crime prevention is needed. In other words, it indicates a "non-emergency situation." This can be interpreted as evidence that the police failed to recognize the seriousness of the situation despite repeated reports from citizens, regardless of whether they dispatched officers to the scene. In fact, only one call was classified as Code 0, which indicates the highest urgency.
The police stated that it has not been confirmed whether any of the 11 callers were included in the list of victims who died in this tragedy. When asked about future investigation plans, they answered, "Not yet."
The police plan to investigate the officers involved in handling the 11 calls to understand how they responded at the time. If the internal investigation finds any illegal acts such as dereliction of duty or falsification of official documents, the case may be transferred to a criminal investigation. A National Police Agency official said, "The reason the National Police Agency released the 112 call recordings is to express our determination to uncover the substantive truth with a resolve to cut to the bone going forward."
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