A music festival held in Seoul's trendy Seongdong District was suspended early Sunday after five attendees experienced breathing difficulties.
Concerns have arisen that the event organizer oversold tickets, prompting widespread criticism of apparent negligence regarding safety protocols. The incident has sparked memories of the tragic Itaewon crowd crush that occurred just two years ago.
According to fire authorities, several reports of dangerous overcrowding were received during the "Boiler Room Seoul 2024" music festival at SFactory, a cultural complex in Seongsu-dong, one of the trendiest and most Instagrammed neighborhoods in Seoul.
While there were no casualties, five attendees reported difficulty breathing. In response, authorities dispatched 11 fire engines and 42 firefighters to the scene. The concert was halted around 1 a.m.
The concert was scheduled to run from 9 p.m. Saturday to 4 a.m. Sunday, taking place in a four-story steel-assembled building. DJ performances were held continuously throughout the night, taking place on the dance floors on the first and third floors.
The highlight of the event was a performance by Peggy Gou, a world-renowned Korean DJ based in Berlin, Germany, on the third floor of the concert hall scheduled for 1 a.m.
As midnight approached, attendees began converging on the third floor, surpassing its capacity of 1,000 people.
Kim Do-heon, a pop culture critic, who arrived at the venue around midnight, described the scene as chaotic, with lines so long that attendees blocked some entry points.
"As crowds surged toward the third floor, people were pushed back by the overwhelming number of attendees," Kim said.
No casualties were reported, but the incident raised public concerns and evoked memories of the Itaewon stampede, which claimed 159 lives in a deadly crowd crush. The event also sparked worries about safety measures regarding overcrowding.
Read More
Criticism has been directed at the event organizer for allegedly selling more tickets than the venue's capacity. The building's first and third floors each have a capacity of 1,000 people, yet fire authorities estimated the crowd at the event reached approximately 4,500.
"The major issue here was the overselling of tickets, which compromised the event's operation," Kim said.
The Boiler Room event is typically an intimate experience where DJs surround themselves with the crowd, creating a unique festival atmosphere.
He further explained that the Boiler Room festival usually operates as an invite-only event, with limited ticket sales overseas.
Kim also expressed concerns about the structural integrity of the venue, noting that the third floor could have collapsed under the weight of an overcrowded audience, potentially leading to a more serious incident.
Meanwhile, reports indicate that the organizer sold a total of 4,000 tickets for the event. They defended this decision by explaining that they had initially calculated a capacity of 2,000 seats. However, they adjusted the number since the event was a standing concert.
They acknowledged the confusion caused by the high demand for tickets at the venue while emphasizing their efforts to manage safety, including deploying approximately 90 safety personnel.
The event organizers have announced that they will issue full refunds to all ticket holders.