Guidelines for Large Gatherings Without Event Organizers Urged 莫蹈梨泰院悲劇 大型活動應有安全指引

At least 156 people have died in the tragic Halloween stampede in a popular nightlife district of the South Korean capital Seoul. Most of the victims were in their 20s and there were more women among the dead than men. Domestic experts and legislators are urging the Ministry of the Interior to put forward safety management guidelines as soon as possible for large-scale gatherings without official event organizers.

South Korea's mask ban was lifted and people took to the streets to celebrate Halloween. Unexpectedly, a shoving incident broke out, killing 156 people. The stampede in Itaewon, South Korea shocked the world. Taiwan's current regulations only regulate the event organizers but should complement the safety management plan for large-scale events without organizers.

Chang Kuo-sung, Chair, Association of Emergency Medical Services at Mass Gatherings: “During the crowding period, there were more than 6 people per square meter. That's when the so-called fluid effect occurs. You have no way of deciding where you're going.”

Huang Kuo-shu, Legislator (Indep.): “The large-scale event safety management plan was only developed after the Formosa Fun Coast explosion incident. It's been 7 years now, but there still haven't been safety guidelines for events without official organizers.”

There have been large crowd-gathering accidents in Taiwan. On New Year's Eve in 2004, a large number of people flocked to the Taipei MRT. Five people were injured, and two people suffered lacerations to their scalps due to the escalator's high speed. Later in 2016, a similar accident occurred at New Taipei's Christmasland event. As crowds poured into the train station, it was suspected the escalator was overwhelmed and fell nearly three meters, causing people to fall and injure their heads. Relevant ministries said they would conduct a rolling review as soon as possible in response to legislators' call to put forward guidelines for safety management at large-scale gatherings without organizers.

Shen I-che, Senior Secretary, National Fire Agency: “Of course, there is no way to predict how many people there will be if there isn't an event organizer. There's no pre-planning for an evacuation place. We'll do some further research on this.”

Lin Hsin-hsiung, Chief, Public Order Div., National Police Agency: “For example, when it snows in Hehuan Mountain, the Ren-ai Precinct has an established interaction plan if there is a sudden crowd gathering like this.”

Experts and legislators have reminded the authorities that Christmas and New Year's Eve events will be celebrated at the end of the year. Using Itaewon's stampede as an example, it is particularly important to prevent crowding accidents in advance.

口罩令解除，民眾上街慶祝萬聖節未料卻爆發推擠事件，造成156人罹難。韓國梨泰院踩踏事件震驚國際，台灣的大型活動人潮疏散規範也引發關注，專家和立委紛紛指出，現行規定僅針對有主辦單位來做規範，應補足沒有主辦單位大型活動的安全管理方案。

全國大型活動緊急救護協會理事長張國頌說道：「推擠的過程當中，每平方米都超過6個人以上，那時候就產生所謂的流體效應，你根本沒有辦法決定你要去的方向。」

無黨籍立委黃國書表示：「八仙塵爆事件之後，才制定了大型活動安全管理方案，到現在已經7年了，還沒有納入無主辦單位的大型活動之安全管理指引。」

其實在台灣也曾發生大型人潮聚集活動意外，2004年跨年夜，大量民眾湧入捷運，因電扶梯速度過快釀5人受傷，有2名民眾頭皮撕裂傷，後來在2016年新北耶誕城也出現類似意外，民眾湧入車站，疑因電扶梯不堪負重下滑近3公尺，導致民眾跌倒，頭皮濺血。針對立委呼籲盡速提出「無主辦單位的大型群聚活動安全管理指引」，相關部會表示將滾動式檢討。

內政部消防署警監祕書沈義哲指出：「屬於自主的，那當然是沒有辦法預期說它人數有多少，相對它的疏散的動線也就不會有預先的規劃，我們會去做一些探討。」

內政部警政署保安組組長林信雄表示：「如果是突發性的這種人潮聚集，譬如說合歡山下雪，南投縣仁愛分局他們也非常有經驗，他們都有既定的交維計畫。」

專家與立委都提醒，年底將迎來聖誕節、跨年活動，如何提前防範人潮推擠等意外發生，以梨泰院推擠事件為鑑，格外重要。