Scenes of horror in Seoul after Halloween stampede

Emergency service personnel inspecting the alley where the Halloween stampede took place in the neighbourhood of Itaewon in Seoul . - AFP

Seoul (AFP): Party-goers in costumes fleeing in panic, desperate attempts at first aid on the sidewalks, scores of bodies lined up under makeshift shrouds: in Seoul's lively Itaewon district, a Halloween festival turned to tragedy Saturday (Oct 29).

More than 150 people - mostly in their teens and 20s - were killed in a crowd surge and stampede, the cause of which is still unclear, in this popular, cosmopolitan district of the South Korean capital, located close to a former US military base and renowned for its bars and clubs.