10/29/2022
( Atlanta ) Senator John Osoff issued a statement expressing his regret over the Itaewon crushing incident in Itaewon, South Korea on the 29th.
U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff today released the following statement:
“Alisha and I are shocked and deeply saddened by the tragic incident in Seoul. On behalf of the state of Georgia and the U.S. Senate, I send my deepest condolences to the families of the victims, my beloved Korean-American constituents in Georgia, and the entire Republic of Korea.”
U.S. Senator Osoff visited Atlanta Radio Korea on the 26th and said, “I will become the most amicable and most active senator for Koreans in American history.”
The Itaewon crushing accident is a large-scale crushing disaster that occurred on the night of the 29th (local time) in Itaewon-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul when at least tens of thousands of people gathered at once ahead of Halloween.
As of 6 a.m. on the 30th, 149 people were killed and 76 people were injured in the accident, the fire department said, resulting in 225 casualties.
As of 4 a.m., the death toll was 146, but some of the injured died during treatment, raising the number to 149.
Of the deaths, 104 were confirmed dead after being transported to several hospitals. 45 people died on the spot, and their bodies were temporarily placed at the Wonhyo-ro multi-purpose gymnasium, and then moved to the mortuary of Soonchunhyang University Hospital in Yongsan-gu.
Of the 76 people injured, 19 are known to be seriously injured, and the death toll could rise further in the future.
Foreign casualties were confirmed as 2 dead and 15 injured. It has not been confirmed whether USFK was included among these.
The police plan to send a forensic investigation team to each mortuary to determine the identity of the deceased and then contact the bereaved family.
<By Eugene Lee>