Korean prime minister pledges to help take care of trauma in wake of crowd crush

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo presides over a response meeting in Seoul on Nov. 1, on the deadly crowd crush in Seoul's Itaewon area. [YONHAP]

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said Tuesday the government will actively provide mental health support to help heal the trauma in the wake of the deadly crowd crush in Seoul's Itaewon area.

Bereaved families, injured people and ordinary citizens affected by the disaster, which left at least 155 people killed, will be subject to government-organized mental treatment programs, Han told a response meeting.

"Not only bereaved families who were saddened by the accident, but also many people who were at the scene or heard the news were traumatized," Han said.

The National Center for Disaster and Trauma and the mental health clinic at Seoul's city government will provide mental health care, Han said.

The exact cause of the tragedy is under investigation, but a sudden buildup of a massive crowd of Halloween partygoers appeared to trigger the incident last Saturday.

Han said the government will come up with measures to ensure the safety of people at large gatherings where there are no organizers.

The government has called on people to refrain from posting hate comments or sharing disturbing footage and unconfirmed information on the tragedy.

Yonhap