Haiti observed three days of mourning Tuesday after 25 people were killed in a deadly stampede at a historic mountaintop fortress in the north of the country.
National police said on Monday they had arrested seven people suspected of being involved in the town of Milot, in the foothills of the citadel. Those arrested include five municipal police officers and two employees of the National Institute for Heritage Conservation.
Without specifying charges, police said he was held for questioning.
Officials initially put the death toll at 30, but later revised it down.
Confirming the death toll, the city’s mayor Wesner Joseph was quoted by the French AFP news agency as saying that authorities had “found 13 bodies in the Sacre-Coeur hospital in Milot, and we recovered 12 others in the Citadel. Twenty-five injured people are also being treated in the hospital.”
What do we know about the deadly Fort Stampede?
Conflicting reports have been noted regarding the cause of the stampede.
Some local reports said that heavy rain during an event led to the stampede, which then broke out.
Milot Mayor Wesner Joseph told Magic9 radio station that his administration was not aware of any activities planned at the fortress, Citadelle Laferriere, when the stampede broke out on Saturday. Later, officials learned that a local DJ had invited people for an event through TikTok.
The event, whose entrance ticket costs about $8 (€6.79), was attended by children and youth, with many traveling on foot to reach the venue, according to videos broadcast before the event.
Stampede breaks out during traditional festival – report
Meanwhile, AFP, citing a report from the civil protection agency, reported that the stampede occurred during a traditional festival held at the fort, which was attended by an unusually large crowd.
“A scuffle broke out between those who were already inside, those who wanted to get out, and those who were attempting to enter,” AFP quoted the report as saying. “There was only one door open for both entry and exit. This panic led to a massive stampede, resulting in incidents of suffocation, crushing and unconsciousness among the visitors.”
The Citadel Laferrière is a popular tourist attraction adjacent to the northern port of Cap-Haitien, which currently serves as Haiti’s main gateway to the outside world due to instability in the capital Port-au-Prince.
The fort symbolizes the hard-won freedom of enslaved Haitians, when the enslaved population rebelled against their oppressors and declared independence in 1804. The fort was built in 1820 to defend against an anticipated French invasion that never occurred.
Edited by: Elisabeth Schumacher