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At Least 30 Dead in Crowd Crush at Haiti’s Citadelle Laferrière

An official inquiry focuses on crowd control lapses tied to the single-gate bottleneck at the UNESCO site.

Overview

  • The crush at the Citadelle Laferrière on Saturday left at least 30 people dead and several dozen injured, with others still missing.
  • The 19th-century fortress sits on steep terrain and has a single gate, which created a choke point between people trying to enter and leave.
  • Witnesses reported a fight that set off panic, and local outlets cited unverified claims of police tear gas, which investigators are now examining.
  • The government expressed sorrow, put services on maximum alert, opened an investigation, and urged calm, and Gazette Haïti reported three days of national mourning with state help for funerals.
  • Courrier International, citing the Miami Herald, said the gathering was a private event called Citadel Vibe 3.0 that drew thousands of young people from pre-dawn to midday, a crush that has renewed scrutiny of crowd safety on sensitive heritage sites.