K-pop concert in Indonesia cut short after crowd crush
K-pop band NCT 127 had to cut short their first-ever concert in Indonesia after 30 attendees fainted during a crowd crush.
Around two hours into the Jakarta concert, the band handed out freebies causing fans to surge toward the stage until the barricade fences collapsed.
“Because of it, 30 people fainted. To prevent other incidents, we decided to stop the concert at 9.20pm,” said police spokesperson, Endra Zulpan, adding that the collapsed fans had recovered.
Police allowed a second NCT 127 concert to go ahead on Saturday (5 November), but banned the distribution of merchandise to fans and required stricter measures to separate fans and performers.
“To make amends [for the crush] and give the best experience, we will add more paramedics and security personnel for the day 2 show,” the concert organiser Dyandra Global Edutainment said on Instagram.
It is the third crowd control incident in Indonesia in just over a month, prompting concerns from the Association of Indonesian Music Promoters about whether the remainder of this year’s concerts and festivals would be able to secure the necessary permits.
Last weekend, police cancelled the third day of the Berdendang Bergoyang music festival in Jakarta after nearly 30 people fainted due to overcapacity.
While, last month, 131 people were killed and hundreds injured in a stampede as they attempted to leave the Kanjuruhan stadium in Malang, after a football match.
AMPI has claimed officials could have a tougher stance on concerts and festivals, which would effect forthcoming events such as Soundrenaline, Head in the Clouds and Djakarta Warehouse Party.
However, the music body has stressed that the incidents at the live music events should not be equated with the Kanjuruhan stadium disaster.
“To make amends and give the best experience, we will add more paramedics and security personnel for the day 2 show”
Overcrowding was also the cause of two massive tragedies the weekend before last, in South Korea and the Congo.
The former incident happened following the Halloween celebrations in Itaewon in Seoul on Saturday (29 October). It was reported that over 100,000 people gathered in the district, which witnessed the crowd crush that killed over 150 lives and injured more than 100 others.
On the same day, 11 people died following a crush at an overcrowded stadium concert in the Congolese capital of Kinshasa. Two police officers were among the victims at singer-songwriter Fally Ipupa’s hometown headline show at the Stadium of Martyrs on Saturday.
The two disasters came just weeks after nine people died in a stampede at a rock music festival in Guatemala.
In other news, a foundation has been launched in memory of 23-year-old Madison Dubiski, who was killed during the deadly crowd surge at last year’s Astroworld Festival, in an effort to ensure concert safety.
The Pink Bows Foundation is aiming to promote stronger safety protocols at concerts and provide scholarships to students interested in pursuing a career in risk management.
“Pink Bows Foundation promotes stronger safety protocols to be consistently implemented at entertainment venues, while encouraging safe spaces and protecting attendees to prevent avoidable injuries or death,” reads the charity’s mission statement.
The organisation is also working to establish legislation, possibly named Maddie’s Law or Showstoppers, that would stop events that don’t adhere to necessary safety measures.
The first wrongful death lawsuit settlements over last year’s Astroworld festival tragedy were reached at the end of last month.
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