The natural urge is to use the same entry when you exit, not because it's safer, but it's familiar. Paul advises you should take a moment to make a mental note of all the exits in a venue as soon as you arrive. Whether it's a stampede or a crush, here are some tips for increasing your chances of survival: Whatever the cause, suddenly a massive crowd attempted to cross one small suspension bridge. Other reports say electrocution sparked the panic. Some say a large group fainted in the crowd crush. Most were on an island in the Mekong River when something spooked them. The annual Water Festival marks the end of the rainy season and a million people had come to the capital for the festivities. Initial reports from the Water Festival tragedy indicate this was a genuine stampede. Panic didn't cause this, the failure to manage this event caused this," said Paul. "There's always this perception that if people had just acted rationally they wouldn't have been crushed to death. Organizers had planned for 250,000 participants, but 1.4 million turned up, leaving security, medical services, and infrastructure woefully inadequate. The critical error with Love Parade was underestimating the crowd size. This was a crowd craze… a movement of people towards something of perceived value. They're running from something that scares them. "A stampede is when people or animals are fleeing a perceived danger. Paul insists what happened in Germany was not a stampede. There are differences between a crush and a stampede. Both events had crowds of more than a million. These tragedies have a few elements in common: both events had a narrow, single point of entry and exit in Germany, it was a tunnel, in Cambodia, a bridge.
Love Parade, Germany, July 2010 – 21 dead, 500 injured. Water Festival, Cambodia, November 2010 – 345 dead, and more than 300 injured. Both happened at popular attractions where something went tragically wrong:
There were two crowd crush/stampedes in 2010 that claimed 350 lives. The crush that followed caused more than 1,500 injuries. In June 2017, a firecracker sparked panic in Turin's main square as 30,000 fans watched Juventus play a European Champions soccer match. Paul Wertheimer, one of the world's leaders on crowd safety gives his expert insight into crowd control, crowd dynamics and staying safe. But sometimes a crowd becomes a crush or a stampede potentially putting your life in danger. Shares Facebook Twitter Photo © GettyImages/Girish Mittaįestivals and concerts draw huge crowds, and are popular with travelers, giving them the motivation to visit a destination. Please note that not all content is translated or available to residents of all countries. By telling us your country of residence we are able to provide you with the most relevant travel insurance information.