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Ivory Coast: 61 crushed to death in New Year’s eve celebrations in Abidjan
(Reuters) – At least 61 people were crushed to death in a stampede after a New Year’s Eve fireworks display at a stadium in Ivory Coast’s main city Abidjan early on Tuesday, officials said.
Witnesses said police had tried to control crowds around the Felix Houphouet-Boigny Stadium following the celebrations, triggering a panic in which scores were trampled.
“The estimate we can give right now is 49 people hospitalized … and 61 people dead,” said the chief of staff of Abidjan’s fire department Issa Sacko.
The country’s president, Mr. Alassane Ouattara called the deaths a national tragedy and said an investigation was under way to find out what happened.
“I hope that we can determine what caused this drama so that we can ensure it never happens again,” he said after visiting the injured in hospital.
At least 18 people were killed in another stampede during a football match in an Abidjan stadium in 2009.