At makeshift Itaewon memorial, flowers, letters, bottles and tears

Social Affairs

Published: 31 Oct. 2022, 18:50 Updated: 01 Nov. 2022, 09:23

At makeshift Itaewon memorial, flowers, letters, bottles and tears

Flowers, bouquets, bottles of soju and letters are piled up in front of Exit No. 1 of Itaewon Station on Monday. [WOO SANG-JO]

On Monday morning, Halloween day, flowers, bouquets, bottles of soju and letters were piled up at makeshift memorials at Itaewon Station's Exit No. 1, near the site where 154 people were killed in a crowd crush late Saturday night.

Mourners started visiting Itaewon Station Monday morning, two days after the tragedy that took so many young lives and shook Korea.

At 8:30 a.m., a 43-year-old woman stood in front of Exit No. 1 with her two children, both elementary school students. The resident of Yongsan District, where Itaewon is located, witnessed the scene herself while out with her family to enjoy Halloween on Saturday.

“When I was passing by Itaewon, I simply thought the people lying on the street were drunk,” she said, tearing up. “I only realized that they were dead after watching the news.”

She said that her two children, dressed up as sharks that night, also witnessed the scene – but she hasn’t explained exactly what happened to them for fear that they may become traumatized.

“My heart is still pounding,” she said. “The people who died were so young, and they were just out to have a good time.” She was unable to continue speaking as her two children each laid down bouquets of flowers.

A mourner places flowers at Exit No. 1 of Itaewon Station on Monday. [WOO SANG-JO]

On Monday afternoon, a 26-year-old student came to Itaewon Station with three white chrysanthemums – flowers normally used in Korea to mourn the dead. He himself had visited Itaewon with friends on the day of the crowd crush. He had gone to a party in Hannam-dong, one stop away from Itaewon, after taking photos with friends there.

He said that he received panicked messages from friends who knew that he had visited Itaewon late Saturday night, as news of the crowd crush spread. He realized what had happened in Itaewon after reading news online.

“The people who died could’ve been right next to me as I took photos and enjoyed the mood of the Halloween celebrations,” he said, crying. “I can’t bring myself to open the photo album on my phone. I can’t sleep at all either.”

Another mourner, Cheon Seung-yeol, 38, came to Itaewon Station from Gimcheon, North Gyeongsang, after seeing news of the disaster while on a tour of Baengnyeong Island with his family.

“I arrived in Incheon from the island after finishing my trip, but I felt so horrible that I came here alone after sending my parents home,” said Cheon. “I’m not very tall, so I kept thinking that if I had been at Itaewon, I could’ve been one of the victims. I think I’ll remember this tragedy as long as I live.”

Letters left by mourners at Itaewon Station expressed sadness for the victims who passed away at such a young age. One person left a large basket of white chrysanthemums on one side of the station. Attached to the basket was a letter that read “I am offering 154 chrysanthemums in hopes that there will never be more such victims.”

There were also notes that appeared to have been left by acquaintances or eyewitnesses.

“I should have saved at least one more person and I’m sorry,” read a note on a bouquet of pink flowers.

“I wish everyone, including my friends, go to a peaceful place and rest,” read a post-it note.

Many at the station were crying or wiping away tears.

Letters and notes from foreigners who visited the site were also left at Itaewon Station, written in various languages, including Chinese and Vietnamese. The crowd crush at Itaewon took 26 foreigners among the 154, from a total of 14 counties, including Iran, China, Russia and the United States.

The flowers, bouquets, bottles of soju and letters left behind by mourners at Itaewon Station covered nearly half of the pedestrian street by Monday afternoon.

BY CHOI SEO-IN [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]