A joyous occasion turned tragic on Friday afternoon when a stampede outside the Madagascar National Stadium resulted in at least 12 deaths and 80 injuries.
The incident occurred before the opening ceremony of the 11th edition of the Indian Ocean Island Games (IOIG), an event anticipated by sports enthusiasts throughout the region.
The incident unfolded due to a mass of fans pushing and shoving to gain entry into the stadium, leading to a cascade of falls, injuries, and deaths at the entrance.
Following the untoward incident, President, Andry Rajoelina, asked the spectators inside the stadium to observe a minute of silence in memory of the victims.
“The state is covering the medical costs of the injured, and on behalf of all the institutions, I offer my condolences to the families of the victims,” Rajoelina said.
The 11th edition of the IOIG started yesterday which features teams from Reunion, Seychelles, Comoros, Mauritius, Madagascar, Mayotte, and the Maldives in an eight-day event.
It is pertinent to mention here that this is not the first incident of its kind at this venue, as at least 15 people died and 75 others were injured in a similar stampede in 2019.
Prior to that, in September 2018, another stampede during a soccer match between Madagascar and Senegal resulted in one death and 47 injuries.
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