A Pokémon 30th anniversary event in Seoul was halted on May 1, 2024, after a crowd crush left attendees lying on the ground [1, 2].

The incident highlights the ongoing challenges of urban crowd management in South Korea, where high-density gatherings in narrow commercial districts have previously led to fatal tragedies.

The chaos occurred in Seongsu-dong, specifically around the cafe street near Seongsu Station Exit 4 [1, 2]. Police and fire units were forced to intervene as the crowd grew beyond the capacity of the area. According to reports, an estimated 26,000 people had gathered by 10 a.m. [2], and that number rose to approximately 40,000 people by noon [2].

Witnesses described a scene of confusion and lack of oversight. Park Yong-jin said to YTN that people were lying on the ground and that the crowd blocked a road lane for 30 to 60 minutes, preventing cars from passing [1]. Park said that the situation was uncontrollable because there was no one providing guidance or direction to the attendees [1].

Much of the surge was driven by the distribution of rare collectibles. Some attendees received a rare "잉어킹" (Magikarp) card, which has a market value of over 200,000 KRW [3]. This incentive drew thousands of collectors to the narrow streets of Seongsu-dong, overwhelming the existing infrastructure.

Authorities eventually stopped the event due to severe safety concerns and the insufficiency of crowd-control measures [2]. The intervention by emergency services was necessary to prevent further injuries as the density of the crowd reached critical levels [1, 2].

“People were lying on the ground”

This event underscores the volatility of 'pop-up' culture in Seoul, where the allure of limited-edition merchandise can trigger sudden, massive migrations of people into neighborhoods not designed for such volume. The failure to implement tiered entry or professional crowd-marshalling suggests a gap between corporate marketing ambitions and municipal safety requirements in high-traffic districts like Seongsu-dong.