Official ‘commits suicide’ after fatal gig in S. Korea
Print Edition
A SOUTH Korean official handling safety at a concert where 16 people died apparently committed suicide hours after the tragedy, which happened when a ventilation grate collapsed, authorities said yesterday.
The death of the 37-year-old, surnamed Oh, was announced as local police began investigating Friday’s incident at an outdoor pop concert in Seongnam.
“I am sorry for the dead victims ... Please take good care of my children,” he wrote in a message to his wife, officials said.
The victims were standing on the grate when it collapsed under their weight, sending them plunging almost 19 meters into an underground parking area.
Amateur video footage obtained by the YTN news channel showed shocked spectators surrounding the collapsed grate as the all-girl K-pop band 4Minute, apparently oblivious to the accident, continued performing.
Disaster relief spokesman Kim Nam-Jun said Oh, who worked with a group sponsoring the concert, jumped off a building near where the tragedy took place.
He was found dead yesterday morning, just hours after speaking with police, YTN said.
Kim said authorities inspected the site yesterday.
“A team of police and forensic experts scoured the site and closely inspected gratings and related structures,” he said.
Police questioned 15 people, including officials of the Internet news provider that organized the gig, Yonhap news agency said.
“If it turns out that safety regulations were ignored, we will bring criminal charges against them,” a police official said.
Witnesses said there were no security guards or safety fences to stop spectators climbing on to the grate, after the 400 available chairs were all taken before the start of the event, which attracted more than 700 people.
“Many people on the gratings were chanting and dancing. I was worried about their safety,” a 45-year-old man was quoted as saying.
Professor Chung Jae-hee, a safety engineering expert with the Seoul National University of Science and Technology, said the incident was another “man-made” disaster.
“Basic safety precautions were brushed aside,” he said.
“The organizers of the show should have at least set up temporary safety fences or deployed security guards there.”
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