BFF-13 Six dead in stampede at Italian nightclub: firefighters

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ITALY-ACCIDENT-NIGHTCLUB-LEAD

Six dead in stampede at Italian nightclub: firefighters

ROME, Dec 8, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Six people died in a stampede at a nightclub
near Ancona in central Italy after panic erupted in the early hours of
Saturday morning, firefighters said.

“The cause may have been the dispersal of a stinging substance, the young
people fled and trampled over each other. Sadly, six people died and dozens
are injured,” the fire service said in a statement on Twitter.

Local reports said around 1,000 people were in the Blue Lantern club in the
town of Corinaldo on the Adriatic coast for a performance by Italian rapper
Sfera Ebbasta.

The accident happened around 1:00 am (0000 GMT).

“We were dancing and waiting for the concert to start when we smelt this
pungent odour,” a 16-year-old boy who was taken to hospital told the media.

“We ran to one of the emergency exits but we found it blocked, the bouncers
told us to go back.”

BSS/AFP/GMR/1220 hrs