Argentina, accidents during Gimnasia-Boca: one dead

A 57-year-old man died in accidents during the Gimnasia-Boca Juniors match, valid for the Argentine Liga, which was played in La Plata (Buenos Aires). The man was struck down by cardiac arrest as he was taken to hospital by ambulance. The match was suspended in the tenth minute of the first half due to clashes between the police and fans who wanted to enter the stadium.

“Many wanted to enter without a ticket,” said Sergio Berni, Minister of Security of Buenos Aires. Tear gas was fired which made the air unbreathable even on the pitch and in the stands, creating panic among the fans. The police also used rubber bullets.

Chaos

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Everything collapsed when the tear gas canisters also ended up on the pitch, carried by the wind, and invaded the grandstand. Hugo Ibarra asked referee Hernán Mastrángelo to stop the game and the players from Gimnasia and Boca returned to the locker room because breathing was impossible. The fans also tried to escape, but chaos broke out because they were trapped and unable to breathe because the police kept firing tear gas.

Some fans managed to enter the pitch and escape. “My two-year-old and six-month-old son couldn’t breathe,” Gimnasia defender Leonardo Morales told the Clarin. “He’s crazy, we were going to play a football match and they turned it into this. There were some of our relatives who almost died, ”he added. Buenos Aires Security Minister Sergio Berni said: “It could have been avoided. We will investigate everything that has happened. If a police officer has fired rubber bullets at people, he will answer in court ”.