The Itaewon Halloween Tragedy - 159 Dead & How The Police Tried To Cover It Up 

The video that was posted yesterday was age-restricted and taken down... We wanted to make sure that this video got pushed out there as this is a case that we really really were impacted by. We apologize if this is your second time seeing this.

The guy who tried his best to do chest compressions for his girlfriend for over an hour almost brought me to tears. I can't imagine what that guy was feeling.

My friend is Canadian, but she was teaching English in Korea at the time. She was 10 minutes away from the scene and two of her friends died in the crowd. Despite being 10 minutes away, she could hear the screams when people started to realise what was going on. She thought a bomb went off.

That police officer trying to warn ppl and immediately tried to help is a saint and is a perfect example of what a police officer should be. RIP to all those innocent ppl, and thank u to those who helped ❤️

The way you provided background of many of the victims to make sure people wouldn't think they were to blame for what happened ... Thank you for doing that.

The elderly gentleman trying to give the victims one last meal broke my heart. He was so thoughtful. I wasn't expecting to cry so soon into the video.

"Maybe we could've saved just one more person" really shows you how much he cares about each and every individual.

The worst part about Lee Ji Han was that he wasn't even out partying, he was on his way home after filming. He lived in Itaewon and noticed the girl. He could have left her there and kept going, but he didn't. He only got stuck because he went to help her. Such a senseless loss of life that could have been prevented.

Wish Stephanie specifically touched on the fact that a lot of the early calls to police were ignored bc the older generation has biased thinking that younger people are irresponsible, lazy, and just like to party. So a significant factor in the lack of police response was that those people in itaewon were this "lazy, drinking" type who should not be partying anyway and thus no need to respond in a timely manner if at all

I was there at Itaewon during Halloween. It was so bad...I couldn't even breath because people kept pushing me. I was stuck in a crowd for about ten minutes. At that moment, my bf told me that it was time to leave Itaewon and I agreed so fast. I was lucky that my boyfriend was with me so he was able to guide me out of the crowd, but it took forever to get out. We were able to get out of the alley, but after we did, that disaster happened...I couldn't believe my eyes when it happened...there was so much going through my head when everyone tumbled over...I was just in there and I escaped before it happened. I remember hearing the sirens and the police/ambulance telling everyone to leave Itaewon and to make more room. I remember them carrying bodies to the street and performing CPR...I was shocked because that could have been me there. As a medical person, I wanted to help perform CPR too but I couldn't help myself because it was so traumatic for me. I feel bad that I survived. I will never forget this day. Salute to those who helped, you're a hero. Those who were taken, I'm sorry.

The lack of police response despite so many alerts is horrifying. Can you imagine if after those first calls, several officers came down and blocked off crowded area and directed traffic and had the music stopped? My heart goes out to the victims and their families.

32:19 BROKE MY HEART. You can see so clearly the fear, worry and sadness in his eyes and can even hear the worry in his voice. To think that so many police didn't do anything it's so shocking to see how much an officer who wasn't even dispatched to the scene cared.

These videos are SO important. Stats are just stats, but storytelling like this gives us the empathy to make stats feel like PEOPLE

The dad who said "there's a term for children who lost their parents: orphans. but there's none for parents who lost their children. I think i know what the term should be: sinners. I feel so guilty" oh my gosh that really broke me. please please, i hope they realise it's not their fault and they shouldn't feel this guilt.

My best friend and her fiancé were about to head to itaewon that night, but her fiancé got an eerie feeling. He said he felt so off about going there. They were dressed and ready to get on the train. My best friend said if you don’t feel like it’s a good idea let’s go back to your parents. And they did. She called me crying that night. Hearing it from her was so heartbreaking. While I was glad they listened to his hunch, I still feel so sick and sad for all those who died.

This has to be THE MOST heart breaking, heart wrenching stories you’ve ever covered… literally crying…

I still remember that in every single group chat I was in, we did a count. Like attendance. Just to see if everyone was alive. And I was so scared when some of my friends didn't answer. Some of them I knew went to Itaewon. I must have texted everyone I know. The following weeks it wasn't "how are you doing?", it was "are you alive?". I woke up the day after Halloween to more than ten messages asking if I was alive. I had slept in until 10 because I drank the night before. I was the reason people worried. People thought I was dead. It took three days to confirm everyone in my class had made it. I got texts WEEKS later asking if I was alive. From people I hadn't talked to in years. It was tragic. The only reason I wasn't in Itaewon was because my homeroom teacher asked me not to. She said it was too dangerous. She even mentioned the alleyway. She might be the reason I'm alive today.

When you hear big numbers of deaths in the media it just turns into statistics. We don’t think about how each of these individual deaths has loved ones grieving for them. It just turns into numbers instead of lives. Hearing stories from the families of these victims is really touching. I hope the survivors and the victims loved ones are doing well.

The way this woman is telling this whole story makes it seem less far away. she shows a lot of emotion.

I think the disconnect a lot of people have with this case is that they don't really know what a crowd surge is, it's very hard to picture and understand unless you've been in one.

I was caught in a crowd surge during Super Bowl 2004 in Downtown Houston. It was the longest 15 minutes of my life. Luckily the crowd made it to an opening. I cried for hours it was terrifying. The man up against me grabbed me by the waist and tried to life me up but he couldn’t. We couldn’t move. He kept me as calm as possible. I wish I could thank him

thank you for making these people’s deaths more than just a number. we’re so desensitized to things like these usually on social media because there’s a new tragedy every week, but you really humanized their stories and i appreciate that. cried many times, you’re amazing for even making this steph

Seeing the officer trying to get people to leave was absolutely horrifying and heartbreaking. I hope he’s okay :/

My older manager (Korean woman) she brought this up to me when it happened. She said i can’t believe all these younger people couldn’t just stay home. It broke me hearing her just pretty much blame the people in the incident when in reality there were warning signs and police should have expected it after a pandemic 💔

What is truly sad is that between 6pm and the time of this happening, 158 calls were made. 158... how does the police brush aside 158 calls that is super scary. rest in pardise, you beautiful souls, and I pray for the families.

The fact that I as a outsider am feeling this amount of sadness & rage & disgust.... I can only imagine how the parents, partners and other people affected would feel..

If you ever have to try to perform cpr and you aren't trained, start singing "Staying Alive" and then internalize it. Keep singing it in your head and it can help. It is literally used when they train CPR because it is 103 bpm through and through. The BeeGees actually received an award for it.

The people who blame the victims for just wanting to have a fun Halloween are disgusting

IMPORTANT: You have to KEEP DOING CPR until the victim starts breathing OR emergency services arrive! CPR is not only about restarting the heart, but it also supplies oxygen to the victim's system..if you stop..the victim will die. Hollywood movie CPR is NOT how you do CPR, you are not a doctor, you cannot determine if someone is dead, that means you DO NOT STOP but have to keep doing CPR and keep putting oxygen in the victims system until either the victim starts breathing autonomously or emergency services arrive!

Had no idea about the men who filmed dead girls just because they were unclothed. How vile.

I started to sob when I saw the poor man on the ground crying and telling his daughter that he's here. This is my country, and I am very disappointed in the police department for not sending officers there quicker. You can see the pain and tears in Steph's eyes the whole time she's telling the story. Rest in peace beautiful souls. My heart sunk every time she told us the way they died. Lots of Love from everyone watching.

I work at an entertainment venue and I honestly believe that people who make safety decisions for anywhere that has entertainment should have to watch the footage from crowd management and fire safety related disasters regularly so they never forget what is at stake when they make their decisions. There is so much research and science into how to prevent these kinds of tragedies and there is absolutely no reason for them to still be happening.

I never realised just how serious this incident was. Thank you for going into so much detail and talking about what led up to it and what actually happened during the incident. I feel like news reports and media never covered just how horrible this tragedy was. They basically stopped describing it after giving us the number of deaths and injuries...

It's so sad that the age group that experienced the Sewol Ferry Tragedy are the same age group who had to go through the Itaewon Halloween Tragedy. They went through two tragedies before they even hit 30. It's like almost 500 promising youths disappeared needlessly.

before moving to korea i told all of my friends and my family that i‘ll spend halloween in itaewon. then my favourite boygroup announced a concert for exactly that day. i was really disappointed that i wasn’t able to go to itaewon but told myself that i can just go next year… i‘m so thankful that i went to the concert instead of itaewon.

The man in the denim jacket is a hero. I wish him the best, rest in peace to those who didn't make it.

The fact that the police tried to destroy the evidence is insane!! This evident was so tragic, I remember seeing it all over TikTok. I was absolutely heartbroken.

I had to perform CPR for 20 minutes, you really do have to put your whole body into it and it's PAINFUL. You can't stop, you have to keep pushing through the ache and the burn and it feels like you can't breathe. I was always taught one thing about CPR that I think should be passed along to others, because you can't be scared when you go into it: "When you perform CPR, you are _expected_ to break ribs." Those words stuck in my mind for years, because it put into perspective just how much you have to put into performing it. I hope it helps but I also hope no one who reads this ever has a situation where they have to.

I feel so bad for the dude who spent an hour doing CPR on his dead girlfriend… he tried so hard to protect her and still lost her, I can’t imagine how that must feel. This part just made me so sad and this whole story is so upsetting.

I wanted to punch the wall when you mentioned women that needed CPR had to be partially undressed and people were trying to film. Not even in distressful situations and death are women safe from sexual harassment.

I went to Itaewon for the first time yesterday and went down that same alley. Pictures don't do justice with showing how SMALL it really is. And at the end of the alley towards the street, there's 2 walls covered in notes for the victims and fresh flowers. It's truly saddening.

I can't believe that people: 1. Partied while watching CPR on victims 2.Filming victims cause they were partially naked.! I feel those people should be punished in some way.

I remember when this happend, my boyfriend at the time lived in korea near Itaewon and i hadnt heard from him all night before the news was out. I had messaged him after seeing the news and the amount of relief i felt was crazy. I had asked him if he wentmand he said he was going to but decided against it. While we may not be together anymore, im still so thankful he didnt go.

Back in 2010, the same thing happened in Duisburg, Germany. It was the love parade and my friend made me go there, she convinced me after 19 days bc of my agoraphobia. I passed out in that tunnel bc of so much distress and woke up in the hospital, someone saw me and got me out, not my friend bc she didn't make it. No one gets me near a place with at least 3 exists and more than 4 people.

that sole police officer doing his absolute best to direct people away from the alleyway broke my heart into a million pieces. You could feel his emotions through the video and it's absolutely heart wrenching :( I sincerely, sincerely hope he is doing okay and getting all the help he needs

Still, there should be laws in every country banning people cosplaying as officials, police, fire fighters... or any emergency workers in public for any reason.

This made me cry multiple times. Thank you for sharing

As the Itaewon tragedy survivor - it was the most traumatizing night of my life

I had to take several deep breathes throughout the video because I could feel myself getting suffocated. I feel horrible for all the victims. Truly a devastating event

I feel for Officer Kim. He’s a soft soul who really did everything he could. The panic when he was yelling, his tears in the interview- all my love to him. And all my love to the victims and their loved ones 💔

I usually don't cry but hearing the parents reactions like the father saying "your dad is here" & hearing the cop talk made me tear up, he wanted so badly to help but with a crowd that couldn't hear him, thought it was a random dude, or was just unaware he was there, that made it so much harder to do anything.

When is the Korean government going to learn that any minor indication of an issue or cry of help has to be taken seriously in order to avoid such tragedies, this just reminds me of the Sewol Ferry incident. Gosh, the negligence and indifference! This is just so infuriating because this could have been 100 percent preventable...

After watching your Burning Sun & Sewol Ferry episodes and then this, I’m convinced that the leaders & most men in Korea truly think of themselves higher than women, children, & any stranger for that matter. The leaders can’t even lead. Everybody in the government seems to have questionable priorities.

It was just a few days after my 19th birthday, and I heard that there was a Halloween celebration in Itaewon, a place about an hour away from where I lived. I wanted to go and have some fun, but my friends and my boyfriend had their doubts - it would be crowded, they thought. My boyfriend warned me that he had “a bad feeling” about it. I convinced them to come along in the end, and when we arrived, it was definitely a fun atmosphere. We took lots of photos, laughed and enjoyed ourselves. But then, all of the sudden, things changed. The place started to get unbearably crowded. We became separated and I heard people screaming and started to panic. I remember that I tried calling out to my friends, but no one responded. Then I heard the sound of sirens as ambulances and police cars started to arrive. My boyfriend was next to me, and he told me that he wanted to help an injured little girl. And that was the last I saw of him. Out of my friend group, I was the only one who survived. For a long time, I blamed myself. What if I never convinced them to go there? I miss them all a lot. Rest in peace, my beautiful Angels

i'm so glad there were people like the dude in the denim jacket there to help out during the tragedy. even if just one life got saved, that's still someone's beloved child....

I've never cried from a RU-vid video before... when the videos of family's and mourners were shown i couldn't stop myself from crying. this tragedy happened 2 years ago but the effects of that day will stay with the family's forever. May the victims rest in piece

I saw the girl in the Jasmine costume before they covered her with a blanket, and I have never been the same 😥. The police are still looking for other people to blame for that night but the reality is that the Korean government was reckless. The main roads were not closed to make space for visitors, there was no police presence. Most of the people in the surge were not even drunk yet. They were just arriving to start the night or done having dinner before starting the party. We escaped the crush and had to walk a few kilometers to get out of Itaewon after the roads were finally closed, and taxi drivers were tellinh us if we want a ride we need to pay $80,000 ($80) just to be taken 10 minutes away to another subway station so we could get home. We were trapped in Itaewon surrounded by 100's of bodies.

i panicked walking through my first festival and get very overwhelmed even in mid sized crowds. i just cant even fathom how terrifying it must have been. i’m so so deeply sorry for all families.

You said when children's parents die they become orphans there's no word when parents lose a child. There is a word, ghosts. You continue to live but you are dead inside. And it never gets better. I will go to my grave mourning my grandson as much as i did the day he passed away.

As a medical professional my heart goes out to all those who tried so hard to help others and provide life saving techniques. If you arent already I implore EVERYONE to get CPR certified for times EXACTLY like this, the more people who can help can be all the difference in situations like this. My heart goes to all these families and loved ones who lost their own loved ones that night.

The way this was reported in the US, it made it sound more like a sudden rush into the area and someone tripped and it created a cascade, more like a trampede... this was an HOURS long issue, and could have been prevented through most of the night. I didn't know so many people tried to report the issue before the deaths occurred.

Officer Kim Baek-gyeom's statement afterwards brought me to tears. He tried so hard to help even though he wasn't sent there and he did everything he possibly could have in that situation. His guilt is so real, but he is a hero even though he could only do so much. The grief in his voice is heartbreaking and I know he must have been terrified, but he shouldn't blame himself. He did his best. My condolences to the families of all those lost, I just hope they know that at least one officer tried to save lives and stop the tragedy as best he could. This is so saddening because I literally just learned about this and I watch the news and try to keep up to date on it all, yet this never showed up on any news articles, stations or even my fyp on TikTok. I am mortified that this incident wasn't more widely covered.

Can I just say I’ve come across you channel and I’ve not stopped watching you content.. the work you do is incredible the way you tell such tragic stories you make them who are now longer with us. You give them a voice.. this is heartbreaking. Thank you for being such a compassionate person and doing what you do! Sending love from the uk ❤

Every time I saw Officer Kim, my heart went out to him. I literally wanted to go through the screen and give him a hug and tell him thank you for trying. Also, I wish I could go to Itaewon to help the businesses there, but then I don't know if it would be rude of me to do so...

The police officer trying to help and hearing him cry was just so heartbreaking. Even the elderly man who was saying “the children need to have their last meal, don’t touch it.” just broke me even more. I couldn’t help but start crying and feeling so broken-hearted for the victims and survivors. I pray for the victims’ families and the survivors as well.

Thank you for breaking down this event. I can only imagine how difficult it was for you because it was difficult of how difficult it was to hear it. Although there can be no consolation to a parent who has lost a child, I pray their souls can find peace within this immense sorrow.

I was there. I’m Brazilian and went alone to South Korea to study Korean just a couple weeks before that. That night I had 2 friends I met in class with me and we were supposed to meet 3 other class friends that arrived earlier. I was vlogging that day and I’m still unable to rewatch my videos getting ready and getting there, I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to make another informative video like yours so thank you. It means a lot to me to show the world that those people were not irresponsible. That night we arrived just before the accident, before 10pm. I almost tripped the subway stairs because it was too crowded, after leaving exit 1 I wanted to go on the ally to meet my friends on the other street as soon as possible cause we were late, but my friend argued with me that we should go eat first, so we turned around and left for a less crowded convenience store. They said it was too crowded on the way to main street so they also wanted to drink at the convenience store before meeting the others, now I’m thankful for it. They saved my life. By the time we got back we saw the first victims. Then more started being carried out and got to the point where every direction we looked at we could see many people making chest compressions on their unconscious friends on the floor. And then the bodies laying on the sidewalk. I’m shaking and crying as I write this, but I don’t feel comfortable talking about it with my friends and family and breaking down in front of them, they don’t get how I feel and try to console me by saying things like I shouldn’t be so impacted by it since I got out alive, but sometimes I don’t think it’s fair that I got home safely and those good people didn’t. We didn’t know our way out of Itaewon and were in a very fragile mental state so it took us a couple hours to finally leave the scene. I remember being on the other side of the street from those people on the sidewalk and desperately trying to text my family to let them know I was okay, I lied to them saying I was already out and safe but we didn’t know our way out yet. Every single day I think about the accident, I wish I was exaggerating but it’s true. Sometimes I feel like I’m broken but I force myself to live my life with a smile so my family doesn’t worry about me. That trip was a dream come true so I try to focus on the good days I lived there before the accident and sometimes find motivation to edit the first days vlogs, it helps me remember how happy I was to be there, and how life has good moments and it’s worth living. I won’t lie, it’s hard, I know I need to move on but survival’s guilt kills me a little bit everyday. Thank you for the safe space created here, I really needed to talk about this. It’s exhausting to play “I’m fine, I’m over it” every time.

I think what really led to the most confusion is the fact that it was Halloween; people hearing someone screaming that people are dying could just be someone trying to "scare them" because its Halloween. I could not imagine the fear that these people were feeling and the anguish their loved ones felt thinking it would be safe since it is every year. My condolences to each and every lost soul and their families.

I love the way you present your videos. You have a knack for getting the point across, the sadness, the irresponsibilities, etc. without being overly dramatic. You would make a great news commentator like Barbara Walters. I eatched your Sewol Ferry podcast, it was the most thorough of all the stories about it. Keep up with all the stories. Young people need fair representation. In a culture that emphasizes listening to and obeying adults and authority figures, it's left to people like you to make sure the authorities act responsibly. Keep them in check! You are the best!

Hi Stephanie. I want to say thank you for getting this out there to everyone. I live in SK and was in Itaewon that night. The memories have haunted my friends and I. So many people were taken away from their loved ones for no reason or regard to human life. So many government officials trying to put the blame on others/not accept responsibility is heartbreaking for the families. I’m not sure I can handle watching this video/listening to it, but I want to thank you times a million for getting this out there and speaking up about it. It means so much to me and I’m certain the loved ones families as well.

It is just so infuriating to know that the bereaved parents cannot sleep at night, disturbed by the broken images of their children, while the people in power who neglected the lives of so many innocent people, can happily sleep as their pockets are stuffed. Shame. On. Them.

ive never commented on any of your videos all those years that ive watched your channel, but i think this needs to be said. i sent this video, actually the spotify podcast link, to a friend who was among all those young people in Itaewon that night. he lost a couple of friends and desperately tried performing CPR on anyone in need for hours. he was slightly injured, but luckily saved due to his height. he feels so guilty that he survived and his friends didn't, and he has been trying not to read many reports on the matter. however, he expressed that this episode is one of the best piece of media to come out regarding this tragedy. he wants to thank you for your hard work. he says it's clear that you just want the truth to come out, and not capitalise on the matter, like so many other people. despite the immense trauma and pain, he will push through because of the strength he's given by all the kind people. thank you, stephanie!

The people who helped save people are absolute bloody legends.

They really took pictures of dead women’s semi nude bodies… this made my chest feel weird and my stomach drop. I’m sure other SA survivors feel the same way. :( RIP to victims who didn’t even get to rest with dignity.

Officer Kim Baek-gyeom breaks me. One of the few police officers who was truly doing his duty to serve and protect. He got right into that crowd and tried so hard. His primal desperation is so hard to watch. Thank you, Officer Kim. You are a hero. I hope he is doing okay 🥺 Also, I was involved in a crowd crush that still gives me nightmares 20 years later. A big guy happened to see my friend and I holding hands when she was literally sucked farther in while I was getting lifted from my feet, and that's when I lost it emotionally. I could not breathe, and had my arm not been up to my chin area, there would have been no way for this guy who was watching me to get a grip on me. My shoulder was badly dislocated. When I found my friend, she had ended up falling after about 10 min. after she was swept away from me. Besides being very banged up, she was okay. I'm shaking writing this. It truly is nightmare fuel. I wanted to thank you for how you explained this SO well. You made it very visceral. I cried so much, and I rarely cry. Wonderful job Stephanie. RIP to all who were lost 💐

Seeing her tear up while telling this story is horrible. This never should've happened. I know it's been a while, but it still messes me up thinking about it. The fact that crowds can get that bad so easily.

can we just take a moment to appreciate the amount of effort stephanie puts in all her videos and podcast

The Policeman that was trying to keep ppl from going into the alleyway broke my heart. His facial expression is pure hopelessness. 😢

The footage of the policeman desperately trying to get people to go back. I can imagine how helpless he must've felt

The way she couldnt even say the story without trying not to cry shows that she actually cares

Recent update on Itaewon: The police is still focusing on drug busting the late victims of itaewon's stampede. Many family members of victims had been informed that their children's body has been discovered far away from the incident, with clothes ripped, belongings rummaged through. I'm not too sure if its just an allegation but many think that these bodies were in such state because of informal police investigation on victim corpses for drug searches and drug usage. These families only recently discovered others were experiencing the same issue by finally being able to communicate with each other after being silenced and discouraged from communicating. This has been done through locating mourning grounds and funerals in less populated areas, not being transparent with the reason for the bodys being discovered in such ways and the right wing's constant focus on drug busting rather than acknowledging the police and government's incompetence to protect their young citizens. Recently they have posted info about this affair onto buses and are driving them around korea, and trying to tell people about these issues. Korea still has issues with censorship in news as there is a big discouragment of independent journaling because no national news network has acknowledged or reported on this. I just want people to realise how extremely corrupt the government and police force in korea is, and how deep this issue is rooted. Information and news can be biased in its distribution when you're restricted by translated reports so i wanted to let people who arent able to access korean independent journalists who are reporting this current development.

This is the second Korean tragedy I’ve heard of…. The first being the boat one where all the students got left on the sinking ship… seems like the Korean police need to step up… so sad. :( the one cop was a true cop

What a lot of people dont understand about crowd surges is, if you're close enough to realise the danger, it's often too late to get out safely. They might look crowded from the outside, but it can be impossible to tell that people are dying unless they're so close that you're being crushed too. If the music had been turned off people on the outside might have heard the screams and a some lives might have been saved. Even then I think a lot of people would still have died.

We arrived in Itaewon at 22:15 and when we realized the situation was extremely bad we tried to walk as far away as possible and then take a taxi to Ansan, where were staying (40min +- away from itaewon) We tried getting a taxi and the chauffeurs were using the urgency of the situation by 4x the price of the taxi. When we refused to pay that much we had to stay in a game cafe until the morning when the subway was open again to take the metro home.

this case reminds me of the murree incident that happened pakistan a couple of years ago where a lot of people suffocated to death dur to Carbon monoxide suffocation because there was just so much traffic and snow

I cried many times throughout this video, the pain of their families and friends must be immeasurable

My mom said she used to frequent Itaewon when she was a teenager, and that was nearly 60-years ago. It was always a popular party place for young people. She was shocked to hear about this when the tragedy occurred. She walked through there in February 2023, remembering what it was like when she was young. She still could not believe so many young people died in the same place she used to "play" as a teenager.

i remember how overlooked this news was, i did not hear about it as much as i should’ve, you don’t just lose 150+ people and not hear about it but in this sickening case it did and its so heartbreaking, thanks to you i hope everyone comes across your platform and acknowledges this tragedy

I’ve been listening to your stories for a couple months now and this one is exceptionally sad and touching. Thanks for sharing this story. This makes me thankful that I’ve survived every major holiday crowd event. I would imagine a fire, a terrorist attack…but not a crowd surge. Makes me understand more why my Mom would always encourage me to stay home on Halloween and thanksgiving and check on me. More people should hear this story so that if anything were to happen in future they will have more patience to not push, not move, and have some reference of what to do even if intoxicated… I feel for all the people who passed and their families.

I wasn't able to finish the video yesterday, I got way too emotional. It's so necessary to keep this case alive, I feel like it has been kind of forgotten. Thank you for reuploading and not giving up on it, you're a great voice for the case and the victims. My heart goes out to the families and friends affected by this terrible tragedy

I was caught in a crowd surge in Los Angeles. It was at a music festival. It was one of the biggest of the year and this year it was at a new venue. I got caught in a narrow alley that connects almost all the stages and all the set times ended at the same time. You didn’t decide what direction to go, the crowd took you. I held on to a very tall guy with a backpack and I’m so grateful he didn’t shake me off on to the ground. With me behind him and his gf at his front we were able to make it out after a long time. I’m so grateful I had my arms in front of my chest before the surge begun. Definitely a near death experience and everything happens so fast yet slow at the same time so it is incredibly hard to react because you don’t know what’s happening until it’s too late. My heart goes out to the victims, RIP.

Jihan was so young and he died while saving a girl. Jihan's mother still posts from his instagram account and it wrenches my heart how her words describe her pain. Her words for her late son and her emotions..... I feel so sad

Your first few testimonies broke me. I have trouble making a connection with victims when hearing about tragedies simply because it's so easy to detach from the possibility of it all. But the idea of talking excitedly with your parents, of looking forward to a Halloween event and preparing for it... that's something I do even in the states. These people are my age, an age that still has so much to give to the world as a whole. You helped humanize these people, that had families, parents, siblings and loved ones. It really set into perspective just how devastating this event was. Truly, you set yourself apart from a person who just simply talks about it for the sake of interest, to a person who raises awareness for the sake of understanding. I can't thank you enough for that.

It hurts me seeing the officer blame himself despite the circumstances, also the guy in denim jacket, definitely our heroes without capes. This tragedy will never be forgotten, thank you, Stephanie for all your efforts in shedding light into these important matter.

knowing that i am 5ft tall and the fact that if i was there i definitely wouldn’t have survived. i know how it feels to be squished in a crowd but nothing to this degree. i’ve been hesitant to watch this specific video because i knew it would make me so emotional :(

I remember I was in Hongdae on the very day and I started seeing my friends who were in Itaewon posting about how horrifying it was. One of my friends was pulling unconscious victims out of the crowd and performing CPR... he was only 21 and he had to face such a traumatic experience. 2 of my acquaintances died, one of whom pushed his girlfriend to higher grounds and brought her to safety. It's so horrifying and the blame game just made it 100 times worse.

To hear all of this so detailed brings all those weird feelings back again. I was also there, just 15 min before everything happened, my friends and me were able to escape. The thing is… with all the adrenaline and overstimulation from music, costumes and so on it was really hard to actually understand what was happening. All my friends and I could think about was to protect our chests from not getting squished and to not loose each other. People were stepping on each others legs, tripped over, were screaming and had a hard time breathing. It became very VERY bad. We just wanted to get the hell out of the crowd and escaped into a clothing shop near the alleyway to get some air. We were lucky enough to have made it out of there just in time. Just for us to unknowingly read the news early in the morning that so many have lost their lives… and that it could have been us is just such a scary feeling. I don’t even want to imagine the trauma and pain that the victims, helpers and people involved in the incident had to experience. I feel so unbelievably bad and sorry for all the people and loved ones who lost their lives or children and friends on that night… may they all rest in peace 🙏

I normally don't get upset watching videos like this. Hearing about the evil of humanity is one thing, but hearing about people trying so hard to keep others alive at their own expense of often death is different. I cried so much.

I keep crying and thinking "What if i was there, what if my family got stuck" and it hurts me to even imagine it. I cant fathom the pain which the families of the victims are going through.

the 2014 korean ferry disaster and the 2022 itaewon disaster could have EASILY been prevented if the government system of korea prioritised HUMAN LIVES over their image that is obviously long gone