German Love Parade stampede

German Love Parade stampede

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2010-07-26 07:28:46 - Nksagar - Sagar Media -: More than nineteen people died and nearly 340 hurt on Saturday at a techno-music festival in the German city of Duisburg when crowds of people were crushed in a tunnel leading to the event grounds, police said.

German chancellor Angela Merkel announced an "intense" investigation into the deaths of 19 people at a techno music festival due to witnesses put the blame on police and security staff.

Read more: www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/breaking-news/uk-ireland/merkel-pledg ..
.Police and Duisburg city officials on questions about the causes of the tragedy at a Press conference yesterday which was described as “chaotic”

Duisburg police said that 10 people
had been rescued another 15 had been injured, when panic broke out as crowds pushed into the confined space.

As crowd of half million festival-goers passing its way from the Rhine city's main railway station through a 300 yard long tunnel towards the festival site, which was packed with more than a million techno ravers.

Police fears that the area would be overwhelmed by the approaching crowd prompted them to seal off the exit to the tunnel,used megaphones to order the revelers to turn back. Panic ensued thus killing more than dozen peoples and injuring hundreds.

Love Parade, one of Europe's largest electronic music events, originated in Berlin and has now been spun off in other cities worldwide.

WDR television said that 1.4 million people were attending the event in Duisburg. Rescue helicopters had landed on an adjacent motorway, and emergency workers were experiencing difficulty getting to the accident site, the station reported.

Party goers continued the festivities, unaware of what had happened. Police were attempting to slowly move people away from the site without causing further panic, WDR reported.The first Love Parade was held in 1989 as the Berlin Wall came down, and ran intermittently in the capital until 2006. Problems accommodating the huge number of ravers wanting to attend the event led to city authorities being no longer willing to host the party.

German chancellor Angela Merkel expressed shock said at the "horrible, sad" "I think we need an intense investigation now into how this happened. We must do everything to prevent this from being repeated."

Pope Benedict XVI at this tragedy "with profound pain" said he was praying for the victims and their loved ones.

Police said persons killed were of age between 18 and 38 and included Spaniards, an Australian, an Italian, a Bosnian, a Chinese citizen and a person from Holland.

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