12 killed in Zambian stadium stampede

LUSAKA – Twelve supporters were killed and 46 others were wounded in a stampede at a stadium in northern Zambia following an international football match, police said on Sunday.

“Twelve people died after a stampede at the stadium,” police spokesman Bonny Kapeso told AFP from the scene of the incident at the Chililabombwe stadium, where Zambia beat Congo 3-0 on Saturday in an African Nations Cup qualifier. “Forty-six others were injured and are currently receiving treatment in hospital,” the spokesman added.Nine men and three women were killed, all of them Zambians.The match was played at the 18 000-seat stadium in Chililabombwe, which is close to the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo, after riots earlier this year at the country’s main stadium in the capital Lusaka.Witnesses said that the crush came as supporters tried to force their way through the limited number of turnstiles in a bid to get home before dark.The match had been due to kick off at 15h00 local time but eventually got under way an hour later as officials waited for the stadium to fill up.A report in the state-run Sunday Times said there had been a “state of confusion” at the Konkola Mine hospital, where many of the injured were taken, with police reinforcements sent in to deal with the large number of relatives trying to identify their loved ones.Nampa-AFP”Forty-six others were injured and are currently receiving treatment in hospital,” the spokesman added.Nine men and three women were killed, all of them Zambians.The match was played at the 18 000-seat stadium in Chililabombwe, which is close to the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo, after riots earlier this year at the country’s main stadium in the capital Lusaka.Witnesses said that the crush came as supporters tried to force their way through the limited number of turnstiles in a bid to get home before dark.The match had been due to kick off at 15h00 local time but eventually got under way an hour later as officials waited for the stadium to fill up.A report in the state-run Sunday Times said there had been a “state of confusion” at the Konkola Mine hospital, where many of the injured were taken, with police reinforcements sent in to deal with the large number of relatives trying to identify their loved ones.Nampa-AFP