Crowding at gatherings poses huge threat to life and limb

Reports stated that stampeding fans pushed through one of the access gates during a match at the Cuscatlan stadium in San Salvador, which is the country’s capital

In a global world, lessons can be learnt from events and occurrences many miles away. At least 12 people died and an unspecified number were injured in a stampede at a football stadium in El Salvador recently. This is a country in Central America.

Reports stated that stampeding fans pushed through one of the access gates during a match at the Cuscatlan stadium in San Salvador, which is the country’s capital.

While all the correct political noises are made, with El Salvador President Nayib Bukele saying the National Civil Police and the Attorney General’s Office would conduct a “thorough investigation” into the events at the stadium, reports said it brought to mind another incident—the deadly stampede that killed 135 spectators at a stadium in Indonesia’s East Java in October 2022. Many were crushed as they fled for the exits after police fired tear gas into the crowd.

It once again tells us that crowding, crushing into exits and entrances—any access gates, in fact—is hugely dangerous at any event, match or gathering. Whatever the reason, usually some sort of panic that is sometimes sparked by rumours, it is just so much better to move out fast but in lines or together but not resorting to pushing or shoving.

When entering a stadium, theatre, hall or public place, we need to respect each other’s space. This is especially true in Mumbai, where with so many persons literally jam-packed into public places, it becomes even more important not to trigger any kind of stampede or a pell-mell situation which spirals out of control and cannot be dealt with by our police or authorities immediately, simply because the public outnumbers them on such occasions. This happened at a stadium, but on train platforms, at entertainment complexes and while exiting malls, remember that the well-moving queue is sacrosanct and lifesaving.

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