Crowd incident database - InCrowd Safety

Crowd Incident
Database

Many people are injured and even killed during crowd events.

Over the past few decades there have been numerous examples across the world. Recent research suggests crowd safety specialists are not always familiar with these disasters.

InCrowd Safety feel passionately that learning from history is key in improving understanding.

This database provides a tool to promote awareness

Date

28/02/1807

12/02/1823

19/02/1849

12/11/1851

16/01/1865

05/12/1876

30/05/1883

16/06/1883

05/09/1887

18/05/1896

19/09/1902

30/12/1903

11/01/1908

04/03/1908

24/12/1913

11/03/1918

31/12/1929

03/03/1943

09/03/1946

09/03/1953

03/02/1954

01/01/1956

17/06/1959

24/05/1964

23/06/1968

02/01/1971

03/12/1979

08/02/1981

20/10/1982

29/05/1985

12/03/1988

15/04/1989

02/07/1990

13/01/1991

13/02/1991

12/09/1991

28/12/1991

01/01/1993

23/05/1994

23/11/1994

18/03/1996

19/04/1998

14/01/1999

30/05/1999

Location

London, UK

Valletta, Malta

Glasgow, UK

New York, USA

Dundee, UK

New York, USA

Sunderland, UK

Exeter, UK

Khodynka, Russia

Birmingham, USA

Chicago, USA

Barnsley, UK

Collinwood, Ohio, USA

Calumet, Michigan, USA

Paris, France

Paisley, Scotland

London, UK

Bolton, UK

Moscow, Russia

Allahabad, India

Niigata, Japan

Busan, South Korea

Lima, Peru

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Glasgow, Scotland

Cincinnati, Ohio

Piraeus, Greece

Moscow, Soviet Union

Brussels, Belgium

Kathmandu, Nepal

Sheffield, England

Mina, Saudi Arabia

Orkney, South Africa

Chalma Sanctuary, Mexico

Taiyuan Illumination Show crush

City College, New York

Lan Kwai Fong, Hong Kong

Mecca, Saudi Arabia

Nagpur, India

Quezon City, Philippines

Guatemala City

Mecca, Saudi Arabia

Kerala, India

Minsk, Belarus

Incident

Spectators crushed whilst over 40,000 people gathered to watch a public execution at Newgate Prison. 30+ killed.

One hundred and ten boys and girls aged between eight and twelve years died of suffocation.

Fire at Theatre Royal, Dunlop Street. As audience members tried to escape the flames a crush ensued killing over 60 people

43 students died at Ward School 26 in New York after student fled reports of a fire in the building. A staircase banister gave way and students fell 3m into a large pile

Music Hall crush, Bell Street Dundee. 20 people, including 17 children died after a visitor fell on the stairs entering the music hall. The large crowd continued to enter.

Brooklyn Theatre Fire. 295 people died. Inadequate evacuation provision resulted in significant crowd crush

12 people died after a tightly packed crowd and a bottleneck caused people to fall on Brooklyn Bridge and be trampled to death

During a variety show at Victoria Hall, children were encouraged to come to the stage to collect free gifts. A stairway became blocked and 183 children were killed in a tragic crush

Exeter Theatre Royal. The audience began to evacuate after a fire. Inadequate provisions and blocked fire escapes resulted in a crowd crush, killing over 180 people.

Major crowd crush during the coronation of Tsar Nicholas II. The gifting of presents encouraged excessive densities and over 1350 people were killed.

False alarm during a convention caused a spontaneous, crowd led evacuation. 3,000 people had gathered to listen to an address from Booker T Washington. A small fight broke out and shouts were mistaken as the word ‘fire’. The exits were unfit for such a large crowd and a tragic crush occurred killed 115 people.

After a fire broke out at Iroquois Theatre, the 1,700 patrons sought to evacuate. Hidden and locked exits resulted in a tragic crowd crush, killing over 600 people.

16 children, aged between 4 and 9 were crushed on a staircase of the Public Hall. 40 more were injured. They had gone to a penny picture show. Once the gallery was full, children were sent back down the staircase. However, as children continued to rush up the stairs a crush ensued.

175 people (mainly children) were crushed on a staircase. School children fled down a narrow stairwell whilst others ran up the stairs after finding exits unusable.

600 people gathered in the Italian Hall on Christmas Eve to show support for striking miners. A false shout of ‘fire’ caused the crowd to rush for the stairs. A tragic crush occurred which killed 73 people.

During the first World War, a bomb explosion in the City caused people to rush down the stairs to Bolivar Metro station. Tragically the gates only opened outwards causing those at the front to be crushed by the following crowd. More than 60 people were killed.

700 – 1000 children attended the cinema on the afternoon of Hogmany. A smouldering film canister caused smoke to billow into the auditorium. A shout of fire caused the children to rush for the exit. Tragically the door was locked and only opened inwards. 71 children were crushed to death.

People ran into Bethnal Green tube station following an air raid warning. A parent carrying her child lost her footing on the stairs causing others to trip. A crush ensued killing 173 people

An FA Cup Quarter Final between Bolton and Stoke saw in excess of 85,000 people enter Burnden Park. Despite turnstiles being closed at 2.40pm due to overcrowding, people climbed fences to access the stands. The excessive amount of people in the Railway End caused the terrace barriers to collapse and 33 people died in the subsequent crush.

Crowd crush in Trubnaya square during the state funeral of Joseph Stalin

During the Hindi religious gathering known as Kumbh Mela, 600 – 1000 people were crushed to death following a crowd surge which broke through the barriers.

30,000 worshippers attending a Japanese shrine to celebrate New Year reportedly stampeded casuing a crowd collapse. 112 people were subsequently killed.

Large crowd on an open sports field rushed to escape pouring rains. The narrow exit resulted in a crowd crush killing 67 people.

A pitch invasion occurred at the Estadio Nacional following disputed refereeing decisions in a football match between Peru and Argentina. Police fired tear gas into the crowd in an attempt to prevent more fans from entering the pitch. This caused the crowd to move towards the exits, however they were locked and the worst crowd disaster ever at a football match ensued with 328 people crushed to death against the metal shutters and over 500 others suffering injuries.

River Plate hosted local ricals Boca Juniors at the El Monumental stadium. At full time as the visiting Boca fans made their way down from their position in the upper Tribuna Centenario towards the ill-fated gate 12, a blockage occurred. Supporters continued to head down the poorly lit stairwell, crushing those who had already arrived at the bottom.

Of the 71 supporters killed, most were teenagers and the average age of the victims was just 19. Tragically, the families of those who had died never really received any explanation and certainly no one was held accountable for what happened that day in the Monumental

Following an Old Firm Derby between Rangers and Celtic, a crowd crush occurred on a stairway as Rangers fans exited the stadium. The exact cause of the crowd collapse is not known, however the stairways were known to be dangerous and previous incidents had occurred including the death of 2 people a few years earlier.

On this occasion, the build up of people on the stairs caused the barriers to give way and hundreds of people then fell forward causing the death of 66 people.

One of the most popular bands of the time, The Who, were due to play at the Colosseum in Cincinnati. A ‘Festival Seating’ plan was used whereby seats were removed from the venue and a first come, first served approach determines a fan’s position in the arena. Organisers under estimated the demand and a large build up of fans outside the arena began much earlier than expected.

When the the band began to play a soundcheck, fans were worried they were missing the show, they became anxious and began surging towards the entrance.

Too few doors had been opened to handle the heave of people, and for those in front, there was nowhere to go. A crowd crush ensued and 11 people were killed

Following Olympiacos surprise six nil win against rivals AEK Athens, fans reportedly rushed to the exits to celebrate the win. A subsequent crowd collapse occurred on the stairway. 21 fans were killed.

During a UEFA Cup fixture between Spartak Moscow and Dutch club Haarlem, a crowd crush occurred causing fatalaties. Official sources reported 66 deaths however some sources claim as many as 350 people were killed.

It was a bitterly cold evening and a number of supporters had chosen to leave before the end of the game. Spartak Moscow scored, causing some fans to try and return to the terraces. A combination of icy steps and Militia preventing fans reaccess to the stadium, caused fans to be trapped in the tunnel area. The slippery conditions caused some to fall to the floor and a crowd collapse ensued.

The European Cup final in 1985 between Liverpool and Juventus, at Heysel Stadium, Brussels resulted in the death of 39 football fans. Liverpool fans surged towards opposing supporters causing them to run away. As they fled the threat, the fans were crushed together in a section of terrace hemmed in by a concrete retaining wall, which eventually collapsed.

During a football match at Dasharath Stadium, heavy hail stones began to fall. Given much of the crowd were uncovered, many of them began heading to the exits to escape the extreme weather.

However authorities had locked the gates to prevent ticketless fans entering the stadium and a subsequent crowd crush ensued.

During an FA Cup semi final fixture between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest at Hillsborough stadium, the central pen behind one of the goals became heavily overcrowded. The high fences built to prevent fans entering the pitch caused the crowd to be trapped and as more people continued to enter the pen, a crush ensued, killing 97 people. Subsequent enquiries heavily criticised all responsible for crowd safety and numerous changes were made to English football, including the introduction of all seater stadia and the removal of pitch side fences.

1426 pilgrims were killed following a crush in a pedestrian tunnel outside the holy city of Mecca. Seven people reportedly fell from a congested bridge leading to the tunnel causing a surge and subsequent crowd collapse.

Football fixture between Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates. Disorder between the two sets of fans reportedly broke out as they approached the stadium with one fan said to be wielding a knife. As fans sought to escape the violence many tried to get into the stadium and a crush ensued killing 40 people. Reports also suggests 30,000 fans had attended despite the stadium capacity being 23,000.

41 people died after 3,500 people sought to reach the Sanctuary at Chalma which was believed to have miraculous powers.

Mexican authorities reported street vendors inadvertently blocked a narrow alley leading to the church. A crowd collapse and subsequent crush ensued.

Large crowds of unknown size arrived in Yingze Park to see lanterns at a light festival. Crowds moving in opposite directions were crossing a poorly lit bridge. Some fell into the water and were drowned; others were killed in the crowd collapse and crush on the west side of the bridge. In all, 105 people were killed and 108 more were injured

Organisers underestimated the number of attendees at a celebrity basketball match. Ingress provisions were insufficient and unable to cope with the large crowd. As fans sought to enter an already crowded gymnasium, a crush occurred on the stairway and 9 people were killed.

New Year celebrations in Kong Kong resulted in 21 people being killed. During the count down to the New Year, the narrow streets and alleyways were filled with people leaving bars and clubs. Over 15,000 were reportedly crammed into the small area of Lan Kwai Fong and a subsequent crowd collapse ensued.

During the ‘Stoning of Satan’ ritual, part of the Hajj pilgrimage, 270 people were killed as a crowd advanced into a partially enclosed area causing a crowd collapse and subsequent crush.

Gowari people staged a political protest and were trying to reach Vidhan Bhavan to present their demands to state government. Nagpur police used a baton charge to disperse the 40,000+ protesters. As the crowd reacted a crush of mainly women and children ensued and 114 were killed.

An electrical fire caused party goers at the Ozone Disco to seek out the exits. Security guards who were oblivious to the fire at the time thought a riot had ensued and closed the exit on the second floor. According to reports, those doors opened inward, preventing the crowd from leaving and causing a crowd crush. 162 people were killed.

Over 50,000 fans were estimated to have arrived at the stadium for the World Cup Qualifier, despite a capacity of only 37,500. Door s were reportedly forced open and a crowd collapse occurred on what of the steep stairways. 83 people were killed.

During the Hajj Pilgrimage a crowd crush occurred on Jamarat Bridge killing 118 people and injuring many more. The cause of the disaster remains unclear.

A landslide occurred at the Sabarimala Shrine as 200,000 male Hindu pilgrims were gathered around the holy site on a hill.

Worshippers were trying to get the best vantage point of the celestial light when the hill collapsed under the sheer weight of pilgrims. As they sought to escape a crowd collapse ensued and 53 people were killed in a crowd crush.

Following a festival, a crowd crush occurred in an underground passage of Nyamiha Train Station in the capital city of Belarus. A downpour after the music and beer festival reportedly caused over 2500 people to rush for cover in the station. The surge and a slippery surface caused some to fall and a crowd collapse ensued. 53 people, mainly teenagers were killed.