A “ruthlessly” opened stadium gate probably led to the deadly mass panic at the Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon.
This was announced by Cameroon’s sports minister, Narcisse Mouelle Kombi, at a press conference on Friday. It had previously been explained that a closed stadium gate led to the tragedy, which claimed eight lives.
The stadium gate was apparently “temporarily closed by the security forces in view of the onslaught of spectators, although other entrance gates were in operation,” said Kombi: “Overwhelmed by the onslaught of people, the security forces made the reckless decision to open the south gate, which led to a crowd led.”
In addition to the fatalities, there were 38 injuries – seven of them were seriously affected, according to the Ministry of Health. The stampede ahead of Monday night’s game between hosts Cameroon and Comoros happened at the stadium gates, where the final ticket checks were to take place.