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Unstable Bridge Blamed for Deadly Cambodian Stampede

   VOA News 24 November 2010
   A Cambodian man compares a photo to those of stampede victims at Preah
   Kossamak Hospital in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 24 Nov 2010

Photo: AP

   A Cambodian man compares a photo to those of stampede victims at Preah
   Kossamak Hospital in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 24 Nov 2010

   A  member  of  the  government panel investigating a fatal stampede in
   Cambodia  says  the group has concluded the tragedy was caused by mass
   panic when an overcrowded bridge began to sway.
   Mak   Chito,  an  interior  ministry  official  on  the  investigating
   committee,  said  in  a  television interview Wednesday that the panel
   will  likely  release  an  official statement in the next few days. He
   spoke on state-run Bayron TV.
   Hundreds  of  people  were  on  the  narrow  suspension  bridge  after
   attending  a  festival  on  an island in Phnom Penh. Officials say 354
   people  were  killed in the crush of bodies as people tried to get off
   of the bridge.
   Officials  earlier  said 378 were killed, but they explained Wednesday
   that some of the bodies counted at hospitals had died of other causes.
   They said 395 people were injured.
   Prime  Minister  Hun  Sen  has  described the stampede as the nation's
   greatest  tragedy  since  the Khmer Rouge's reign of terror during the
   1970s. A national day of mourning is to be observed on Thursday.

   Some information for this report was provided by AP.

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