A crush outside an Africa Cup of Nations football match in Cameroon has killed at least eight people and wounded 38 more.
Crowds of shouting football fans were crushed at the admission gates of the Paul Biya stadium in Yaounde, according to video. Witnesses recounted chaotic scenes outside the stadium as thousands of people tried to get inside.
A 14-year-old kid was among the fatalities, while seven individuals were critically injured. Cameroonian President Paul Biya has requested an investigation into the accident and has expressed his “deepest sympathies” to the relatives of the dead. The African Football Confederation has also initiated its own probe.
According to officials, over 50,000 people attempted to attend the game. Among them eight people lost their lives.
The stadium has a capacity of 60,000, but due to Covid limits, it was not expected to be more than 80% filled for the game.
Nick Cavell, a BBC Africa producer, was at the game and says news of the crush did not seem to reach the crowd until it was reported on social media.
Buster Emil Kirchner, a Danish journalist, observed “a lot of commotion” as spectators clamoured to enter the stadium through a single open gate.
“It was hectic – people rushing, jumping fences, crashing over barricades,” he told, adding that he saw several people without tickets attempting to “push themselves in.”
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