The crush at Guinea’s Third of April Stadium has left 56 football fans dead and 50 more people missing – with fears the final death toll could climb even higher
Relatives are desperately searching hospitals and mortuaries for loved ones after a stampede led to the deaths of 56 football fans – with 50 more people still missing.
The tragedy unfolded on Sunday during a football match in the city of Nzerekore, southern Guinea, when chaos erupted at the crowded Third of April Stadium. Fans became angry over a penalty decision with witnesses saying some supporters threw stones towards the field.
Survivors say security forces reacted to the disturbance with tear gas as fans poured onto the pitch. Although some supporters managed to jump over a high fence to escape, horrific videos from the scene showed many struggling to get through the main stadium entrance, leading to a crush.
Officials say 56 people died but there are fears the eventual toll could be as high as 135, according to the Nzerekore region’s Collective of Human Rights Organisations, and 50 more people remain missing. In the capital Conakry and other parts of the country, flags are at half-mast as the country observes three days of mourning.
A distraught Kambaly Kouroumah who is searching for his teenage brother, Adama, 15 at a morgue in Nzerekore, said: “I want to see him now, dead or alive.” But Mamadou Sanoh’s painful search for his 10-year-son ended with heartbreak. “I went to the morgue and saw his body,” he said. “I cannot tell you the shock I am feeling.”
The match between the home team and Labe was the final of a two-week national tournament honouring Guinea’s military leader, Mamadi Doumbouya. Held in Nzerekore, more than 350 miles from Conakry, the match had attracted a large crowd of adults and children in the football-loving country.
Among the dead was Jaquerine Keba Koevogui, 15, whose father said she rarely visited the stadium and, although she loved football, would always prefer to watch it on television.
Jules Koevogui, 42, said: “My daughter was with other members of the family, mostly boys, who were able to jump over the stadium walls while she tried to get out through the entrance.”
While videos showed the stadium at full capacity, Cisse Lancine, a local sports journalist, estimated there were between 20,000 and 30,000 spectators.
Rights groups criticised the use of tear gas by authorities and accused the security forces of using their vehicles to obstruct the stadium entrances. Nzerekore’s human rights organizations have called for the arrest of the organisers of the tournament.
Authorities said they are investigating the incident, which adds to growing pressure on Mr Doumbouya who, since taking power in 2021, has failed to solve the economic and political challenges he chastised the previous government for.
The United Nations in Guinea has promised a quick response involving humanitarian, medical and psychological support for the victims of the disaster.
Struggling to process their grief, families are asking questions and looking for ways to prevent a reoccurrence. “We must now keep our children away from large demonstrations of mobilisation,” said Joel Gbamou, a civil society activist who lost his two sons in the tragedy.
