At least 31 people were trampled to death in the capital of the Republic of Congo after a frantic rush to get past a stadium gate for an army recruiting event, according to officials on Tuesday.
A prosecutor announced that he has launched an enquiry into the tragedy that occurred when thousands of young people arrived at the Michel d’Ornano stadium on Monday night in the hopes of securing one of the 1,500 army jobs.
According to security personnel, a gate was attempted to be forced open, leaving victims dead inside.
Some allegedly attempted to break through the gate, while others attempted to scale a wall and enter the stadium.
The government later updated the death toll from 37 to 31, although several of the 145 injured were listed as critically ill, according to officials.
A 24-year-old male, who wished to remain anonymous, described to AFP how there was a stampede as individuals pushed through the gate. “There were people with far worse injuries than me,” the foot-dislocated survivor remarked.
“There was a row of people in front of me,” stated another survivor, who also asked to remain anonymous. The individuals collapsed. Other buddies and I both collapsed on top of each other.”
He claimed he passed out and didn’t wake up until an ambulance arrived.
Numerous social media videos purportedly showed dozens of dead at a municipal mortuary.
Others featured wounded individuals being admitted to Brazzaville hospitals.
The army said in a statement read on national television that the recruiting drive had been indefinitely suspended.
Tresor Nzila, head of local rights NGO, called for a full investigation and to hold the Congolese government responsible for not evaluating the risks of a call-up.
“The Congolese government is incapable of creating other employment opportunities,” he said. “The defense and security forces have become the main job providers”.
Despite having vast oil and gas deposits, the Republic of Congo, commonly referred to as Congo-Brazzaville to differentiate it from its larger neighbour, the Democratic Republic of Congo, is a poor nation of roughly five million inhabitants.
The World Bank estimates that 42 percent of young people are unemployed.
Andre Ngakala Oko, the state prosecutor for Congo-Brazzaville, announced the start of an investigation.
Congo has seen comparable calamities. In 2011, a stampede during a music festival in Brazzaville claimed the lives of seven individuals.
And in 1994, when worshippers crowded into a church to dodge a storm, at least 150 people were trampled to death in the capital.
