South Korea Investigates Crowd Surge, India Looks into Bridge Collapse

South Korea Investigates Crowd Surge, India Looks into Bridge Collapse¹

India and South Korea are mourning and searching for answers after weekend disasters that left hundreds of people killed.

Saturday, more than 150 people were crushed to death at a crowded Halloween celebration in Seoul. The next day, a bridge collapse in India killed at least 133 people.

The South Korean disaster took place in the narrow roads of Seoul's Itaewon neighborhood. The area has many places for drinking, dancing and other nightlife.

Tens of thousands of people flooded into Itaewon Saturday. Witnesses and survivors² remembered a "hell-like" chaos³ when the crowd surged and people began to fall as they tried to escape. The witnesses said the entire Itaewon area was very crowded with vehicles and people. This made it very difficult for rescuers to get to those in need.

Police said they have created a 475-member group to investigate the crush.

Officers have received videos taken by security cameras in the area and are looking at video clips posted on social media. The police told reporters that officers have interviewed more than 40 witnesses so far.

Other police officers said they are trying to find exactly when and where the crowd surge started and how it got worse. They said a team of police officers searched the Itaewon area on Monday.

"The government will thoroughly⁴ investigate the cause of the incident and do its best to make necessary improvements of systems to prevent a similar accident," South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said at a government meeting about the disaster.

Some witnesses said the surge was caused by people in the upper part of the road pushing others farther down the hill.

Local media also questioned an apparent lack of safety preparations for the large crowd expected to gather in Itaewon. Seoul police deployed⁵ 137 officers to control the large crowd.

As of Monday morning, the government said it had identified 153 of the 154 dead. It said 149 other people are injured, 33 of them seriously.

Bridge collapse in India

The bridge that collapsed⁶ Sunday in the Indian town of Morbi, Gujarat state, was 143 years old. Officials are still searching for possible victims. Police said Monday they had arrested nine people in connection with the event.

The bridge was built by the British in the late 1800s and was called an "engineering marvel⁷." It had been closed for repair work for several months earlier this year. It reopened four days before the collapse.

Indian Inspector-General Ashok Yadav said police have formed a special investigative team. He said it had arrested employees of the bridge's operator, Oreva Group.

"We won't let the guilty get away, we won't spare anyone," Yadav said.

Gujarat authorities opened a case against Oreva for suspected culpable⁸ homicide, attempted culpable homicide and other violations⁹.

The company had reopened the bridge, which crosses a wide part of the Machchhu river, on October 26. That is the first day of the Gujarati New Year, which falls during the Hindu festival season. The newly reopened bridge drew hundreds of people.

A Morbi city official, told the Indian Express newspaper the company had reopened the bridge without first getting a "fitness certificate." That claim could not be independently confirmed.

Officials said the structure collapsed under the weight of hundreds of people. Security camera videos showed the bridge shaking violently and people trying to hold on to its cables. Then the walkway gave way and crashed into the river.

State minister Harsh Sanghvi told reporters that 133 people were confirmed dead and many others were admitted to hospitals in serious condition. Rescue teams worked overnight to search for survivors.

It was not clear exactly how many people were on the bridge when it collapsed. But survivors said it was so crowded that people were unable to quickly move to safety when its cables began to break.

A Gujarat state government election is expected in coming months. Opposition¹⁰ parties have demanded an investigation¹¹ into the collapse.

Asia has seen three major disasters involving large crowds in a month.

In Indonesia, 132 people were killed after police fired tear gas at a crowd during a soccer match October 1. It caused a surge as people tried to flee.

Words in This Story

surge — n. a sudden movement of many people

alley¹² — n. a narrow street or passage between buildings

chaos — n. complete confusion and disorder¹³

marvel — n. a wonderful or marvelous person or thing

culpable — adj. deserving blame

festival — n. a special time or event when people gather to celebrate something

certificate — n. a document that is official proof that something has happened

cable — n. a thick, strong rope made of wires that are twisted together

1 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

2 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

3 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

4 thoroughly   

adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地

参考例句：

• The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
• The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。

5 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

6 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

7 marvel   

vi.(at)惊叹vt.感到惊异；n.令人惊异的事

参考例句：

• The robot is a marvel of modern engineering.机器人是现代工程技术的奇迹。
• The operation was a marvel of medical skill.这次手术是医术上的一个奇迹。

8 culpable   

adj.有罪的，该受谴责的

参考例句：

• The judge found the man culpable.法官认为那个人有罪。
• Their decision to do nothing makes them culpable.他们不采取任何行动的决定使他们难辞其咎。

9 violations   

违反( violation的名词复数 )； 冒犯； 违反（行为、事例）； 强奸

参考例句：

• This is one of the commonest traffic violations. 这是常见的违反交通规则之例。
• These violations of the code must cease forthwith. 这些违犯法规的行为必须立即停止。

10 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

11 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

12 alley   

n.小巷，胡同；小径，小路

参考例句：

• We live in the same alley.我们住在同一条小巷里。
• The blind alley ended in a brick wall.这条死胡同的尽头是砖墙。

13 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。