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16 concert goers people were killed and nine others seriously injured when they plunged down a ventilation shaft after a grate gave way during an outdoor music event in Korea on Friday (17th October).

The incident happened during a performance by popular all-girl K-pop band 4Minute (pictured above) at Seongnam south of Seoul.

Commenting on the incident,  a spokesman for the local fire services stated "they were standing on the ventilation grate to get a better view when it collapsed under their weight."

Rescuers said 16 people were confirmed dead but the death toll might rise with some of the injured understood to be in critical condition.

Television reports said the victims fell more than 10 metres into an underground parking area when the grate gave way shortly before 6:00pm (local time).

Amateur video footage obtained by the YTN news channel showed shocked spectators surrounding the collapsed grate as 4Minute continued their performance.

More than 700 people were believed to be at the outdoor concert.

One witness told YTN "there was a sudden loud screaming, and when I turned it looked as if people were being sucked down into a hole."

A woman standing nearby said a great "cloud of dust" billowed up from the ventilation shaft after the grate collapsed.

Most of the dead and injured were believed to be students, YTN said. It is believed concert organisers had repeatedly urged the fans to move off the grate before it collapsed.

One young spectator, Lee Sung-Eun, told JTBC TV that she had come close to being among the victims, stating "I wanted to climb onto the grating so I could get a better view of the band.

"But my father stopped me, saying it was dangerous. A couple of minutes later, I heard a bang and saw the people standing on the grating gone."

The injured are being treated at several hospitals near the venue.

South Korea has suffered a recent series of accidents involving young victims, including the Sewol ferry disaster in April that killed more than 300 people, most of them high school students.

In February, the roof caved in on a student-packed auditorium near the southern city of Gyeongju, killing 10 people and injuring more than 100. An investigation uncovered evidence of structural flaws and lax management controls.

The Sewol disaster prompted government promises of a national review of safety standards, as it became clear that poor regulatory oversight was a major contributor to the scale of the tragedy.

The last major accident at a music concert was in 2005 when 11 people were crushed to death and nearly 80 injured in a stampede as thousands tried to enter the stadium venue in the southeastern city of Sangju.

AFP

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