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MBC wanted to cancel a live show in Sangju, North Gyeongsang Province due to safety concerns about the venue, where a stampede on Monday night killed 11 and injured scores of others. Sangju police said Tuesday MBC staff visited the Sangju Citizen¡¯s Sports Arena a month ago and decided to pull out but were persuaded to go ahead after Sangju City promised to improve safety.
MBC received letters from the promoters and Sangju City on Aug. 19 and 23 saying the city hoped to host the ¡°MBC K-Pop Concert.¡± MBC looked at the site on Sept. 7 and decided against it, partly because of safety concerns and partly because the promoters lacked experience. However, two weeks before the event, on Sept. 13, a high-ranking Sangju City official and staff from the promoters visited MBC and promised Sangju City would take full responsibility of safety issues. That persuaded MBC to go ahead with the plan.
MBC's head of entertainment, Kim Young-hee, on Tuesday visited Sangju police to stress that the broadcaster raised the safety concerns.
Some 10,000 people on Sunday gathered outside the venue, 5,000 alone in front of the gate where the stampede broke out. The reason crowds were so large is that MBC planned to make concert long enough for a two-part TV program, to be broadcast on Oct. 14 and Nov. 4. That is why so many popular singers were invited.
The president of the promoters, the International Culture Promotion Association, is a brother-in-law of Sangju Mayor Kim Keun-soo. The company reportedly failed to abide by accident-prevention rules for performance with more than 3,000 spectators.
The stampede broke out when the venue¡¯s gates were opened before the show.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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