26 Foreigners, Including 2 American Students, Killed in Halloween Crush in South Korea

Rescue teams and firefighters work at the scene where dozens of people were injured in a late-night stampede during a Halloween festival in Seoul, South Korea, on Oct. 30, 2022. Kim Hong-ji/Reuters

The number of fatalities from the Halloween crowd surge in South Korea has risen to 154 people, 26 of whom were foreign nationals, South Korean officials said on Oct. 31. Two American college students were among the victims.

The 26 foreign victims were from the United States, Iran, China, Russia, Japan, France, Austria, Australia, Norway, Vietnam, Thailand, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Sri Lanka, Yonhap News Agency reported.

One foreigner has been hospitalized, while 14 others have returned home, South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin said.

Park said the government is considering ways to provide foreign victims with assistance comparable to that provided to local citizens. He noted that South Korea would also provide help to the victims’ bereaved families.

Emergency service personnel are seen in the alley where a Halloween crush took place late on Oct. 29 in the neighborhood of Itaewon in Seoul, South Korea, on Oct. 30, 2022. Anthony Wallace/AFP via Getty Images

The Halloween celebration in South Korea turned deadly when huge crowds at the event surged into a narrow alley measuring 10 1/2 feet wide in Seoul’s leisure district of Itaewon. Officials said most of the victims were teenagers and young adults.

South Korean authorities are still investigating what caused the crowd surge.

2 American Victims

Two American college students were among those killed in the crush. One was Anne Gieske, a nursing student at the University of Kentucky who was studying in South Korea through a study abroad program.

University of Kentucky President Eli Capilouto wrote in a statement that the university has been in contact with Gieske’s family and will provide support “now and in the days ahead” as they cope with the loss.

“There aren’t adequate or appropriate words to describe the pain of a beautiful life cut short. It isn’t fair, nor is it comprehensible. It is loss and it hurts in ways that are impossible to articulate,” Capilouto said.

Steven Blesi, a student at Kennesaw State University in Georgia, was also killed in the crush. His father, Steve Blesi, said that his son was in South Korea to study international business and the Korean language.

“I can’t imagine the suffering he endured,” Blesi told NBC News. “The South Korean police should have been better prepared.”

The U.S. Embassy in South Korea confirmed the deaths of two U.S. citizens but declined to provide additional information due to privacy considerations.

In a statement, the embassy stated that it will work closely with local authorities and other partner organizations to assist U.S. citizens affected by the tragedy.

“I am deeply saddened by the loss of so many lives last night, to include two young Americans celebrating alongside their Korean friends and others from around the world,” U.S. Ambassador Philip Goldberg said.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared a national mourning period on Oct. 30 and ordered flags at government institutions to fly at half-staff following the tragedy.