Neon_Chaos
02-05-2006, 05:17 AM
The poverty in my country is getting ridiculous. What people will go through just for a small chance to win a small amount of money. :(
http://news.inq7.net/nation/index.php?index=1&story_id=65164
Game show stampede: 74 dreams crushed
First posted 01:36am (Mla time) Feb 05, 2006
By Luige A. del Puerto, Edson C. Tandoc Jr., Volt Contreras
Inquirer
Editor's Note: Published on page A1 of the February 5, 2006 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer
THEY came in the tens of thousands, some camping out for days, hoping fortune would favor the earliest to get in among them . All they wanted, each of them, was a stadium seat, a free raffle ticket, and a stroke of luck that could end a life of poverty.
Yesterday, the impatient buildup of dreams exploded into a mad, deadly rush.
Red Cross officials said 74 people who had come to watch the first anniversary presentation of the popular ABS-CBN noontime show "Wowowee" were crushed to death in an early morning stampede at the Philsports Arena (formerly Ultra) in Pasig City, a shocking spectacle many saw as a telling measure of the hard times.
About 500 others were injured, Red Cross officials said.
In a telegram to the Bishop of Pasig, the Vatican said: "The Pope asks Almighty God to grant solace to the injured and to those who are mourning the loss of their loved ones."
Cause-oriented groups expressed concern that the stampede may have been caused by extreme <TABLE cellSpacing=4 cellPadding=0 width=250 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD><TABLE cellSpacing=4 cellPadding=0 width=200 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=natback height=1>http://news.inq7.net/nation/images/common/pixel.gif</TD></TR><TR><TD>Print this story (http://news.inq7.net/common/print.php?index=1&story_id=65164&site_id=16)
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</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>poverty and despair which they said were so prevalent among Filipinos that one of their main hopes for a better life was a TV show offering a quick windfall: It's not P51 to the dollar, they said, but 70 lives to the peso.
It was one of the deadliest, if not the deadliest, incident involving a stampede to occur in the country in years.
The victims were predominantly from the poorest parts of the metropolis and nearby provinces, generally jobless and lured by the show's promise of instant millions.
Some came from as far as the Visayas.
The victims included the elderly, pregnant women, toddlers, entire families or neighborhoods who since Monday had taken shelter in jeepneys or slept on mattresses and newspapers in the open street leading to the gates of the Arena.
Many of the dead were women crushed against a closed steel gate at the bottom of a slope or trampled underfoot. At least one child was killed, hospital officials said.
It was not the first stampede to occur at the Arena.
President Macapagal-Arroyo ordered a thorough probe and the "submission of results within 72 hours," Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said.
Bunye said Transportation and Communications Secretary Leandro Mendoza had ordered the National Telecommunications Commission to look into any "possible culpability" of ABS-CBN (owned and managed by the Lopez family).
In a text message later, Bunye said that Local Government Undersecretary Marius Corpus, chair of a fact-finding team, had subpoenaed ABS-CBN executive Charo Santos-Concio, Wowowee host Willie Revillame, the head of the affair's organizing committee and the chief of the security of the Ultra event to appear before the DILG at 1 p.m. today.
Show cancelled
ABS-CBN cancelled the anniversary celebration of one of its most-watched TV shows, which has sparked a ratings battle with other noon shows, particularly "Eat Bulaga."
About 50,000 people were waiting to get inside the stadium when the mayhem erupted, Pasig Mayor Vicente Eusebio said, according to the Associated Press.
Casualty reports were conflicting.
The Eastern Police District listed 79 dead and 328 injured as of 7:30 p.m. But Philippine Red Cross chairman Sen. Richard Gordon said the official Red Cross count was 74 dead, including one person who died of injuries last night at the Medical City.
Vice President Noli de Castro also initially reported 79 killed but later said he was told by health department authorities there had been a double-counting of names.
ABS-CBN officials told reporters their figure was 70 dead but its website, at 6:25 p.m., reported 79 killed.
The deaths occurred in a fairly small area of a passageway leading into the football field, suggesting the victims were trapped in a spot where they had nowhere else to go. The spot where they died bore no bloodstains.
Guard Juner Empelina recalled seeing entire rows of bodies falling over and three more layers of bodies piling up on top of them.
Six hours after the stampede, some of the injured were still checking into hospitals.
Eusebio said the melee erupted as the crowd pushed and surged toward the gates, pinning and trampling those in front.
"The gates were being partially opened then shut," said Myrna Britania, 42, who had spent all night in line and was one of the injured. "People at the back of the line were pushing not knowing there were already people dead lying on the ground in front."
Eusebio and police denied reports that the stampede was caused by somebody shouting "Bomb! bomb!"
Several hours after the incident, tearful survivors were still looking for missing parents, children or relatives.
Half-eaten food
The once-swarming street outside the stadium was strewn with slippers and shoes, bags, umbrellas, articles of clothing, and half-eaten food.
Oddly, though, the day's tragedy seemed to reveal something bizarre in the Filipino psyche: Instead of going home, thousands of Wowowee fans who made it to the stadium before the stampede decided to stay put, holding on to their tickets and their seats, still hoping the show would go on.
By 1:30 p.m., comic host Revillame, reduced to a sobbing, bowed figure, climbed the stage and apologized to the galleries and those watching from their homes.
"Nobody wanted this to happen. I hope you understand that today's show is being cancelled," he said in Filipino. "Let's pray for those who died or were hurt this morning."
Noli's appeal
His show, he said, was for "Filipinos who think they have lost all hope."
The audience cheered him on, some shouting "It's not your fault, Willie!"
From backstage, De Castro, who was once ABS-CBN's biggest media celebrity, joined Revillame to appeal for calm and understanding.
"It's not proper that we continue having fun here while there are 79 people dead and more than 200 others injured in hospitals right now," De Castro said.
De Castro led the crowd in a minute of silence for the victims.
Security lapse?
"There appears to be a lapse in security," Mayor Eusebio told the Inquirer. "The management got a permit from the City Hall, but they should have also coordinated with us for the security measures, especially with a crowd this big."
Most of those killed were brought to the Medical City before they were transferred to the Arlington Funeral Homes in Pasig City.
"We did not expect this would happen. We just want to make people happy every day. We hope people will understand that we just wanted to help," Revillame said in a press conference at the Arena.
Outside, other hosts of the programs hugged one another and broke into tears. Soon, ABS-CBN officials, including its chair and owner Gabby Lopez, arrived.
'We're devastated'
"It's insensitive to continue the show," said ABS-CBN's Concio. "We're all devastated."
The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines offered prayers and condolences.
"Our hearts bleed in sorrow for the victims who, coming from the poorest of the poor, had no other intention but to be entertained and probably get some prizes given out by the show," CBCP President and Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo said.
President in black
Ms Arroyo formed a five-man team to look into the tragedy.
De Castro said the team would be composed of representatives from the DILG, the local government of Pasig, the Department of Health, the Office of Civil Defense, and the National Capital Region Police Office.
The team will find out what really happened, who was responsible, and recommend measures to prevent a repeat of the tragedy.
The President wore a black blouse when she left Malacanang at noon to visit the injured being treated at the Rizal Medical Hospital. She was seen on TV kneeling down in front of a middle-aged woman who had suffered a leg injury.
Caused by poverty
"The Ultra stampede is the real state of the economy. It's not P51 to the dollar. It's 70 lives to the peso," said Sanlakas president Wilson Fortaleza.
Bayan secretary general Renato Reyes said: "The real tragedy is the poverty that pushes people to pin their hopes in game shows. That is what is saddening."
Yesterday's incident was not the first time fans had stampeded to try and watch an ABS-CBN show.
In Cebu last year, chairs and pieces of metal railings flew as zealous spectators surged toward the stage during a mall show of the network. No one was hurt among the spectators but some the stars suffered bruises.
Network officials said their shows in the provinces were peaceful.
In 2003, eight people were injured when crowds jostled their way into the Philsports football field to watch Taiwanese celebrities Vaness Wu, Ken Zhu and Barbie Xu.
In September 2005, four young men were trampled to death in a stampede during a rock concert at the Amoranto Stadium in Quezon City. Gil C. Cabacungan Jr., Cynthia D. Balana, Norman Bordadora, Tina Santos
http://news.inq7.net/nation/index.php?index=1&story_id=65164
Game show stampede: 74 dreams crushed
First posted 01:36am (Mla time) Feb 05, 2006
By Luige A. del Puerto, Edson C. Tandoc Jr., Volt Contreras
Inquirer
Editor's Note: Published on page A1 of the February 5, 2006 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer
THEY came in the tens of thousands, some camping out for days, hoping fortune would favor the earliest to get in among them . All they wanted, each of them, was a stadium seat, a free raffle ticket, and a stroke of luck that could end a life of poverty.
Yesterday, the impatient buildup of dreams exploded into a mad, deadly rush.
Red Cross officials said 74 people who had come to watch the first anniversary presentation of the popular ABS-CBN noontime show "Wowowee" were crushed to death in an early morning stampede at the Philsports Arena (formerly Ultra) in Pasig City, a shocking spectacle many saw as a telling measure of the hard times.
About 500 others were injured, Red Cross officials said.
In a telegram to the Bishop of Pasig, the Vatican said: "The Pope asks Almighty God to grant solace to the injured and to those who are mourning the loss of their loved ones."
Cause-oriented groups expressed concern that the stampede may have been caused by extreme <TABLE cellSpacing=4 cellPadding=0 width=250 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD><TABLE cellSpacing=4 cellPadding=0 width=200 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=natback height=1>http://news.inq7.net/nation/images/common/pixel.gif</TD></TR><TR><TD>Print this story (http://news.inq7.net/common/print.php?index=1&story_id=65164&site_id=16)
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</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>poverty and despair which they said were so prevalent among Filipinos that one of their main hopes for a better life was a TV show offering a quick windfall: It's not P51 to the dollar, they said, but 70 lives to the peso.
It was one of the deadliest, if not the deadliest, incident involving a stampede to occur in the country in years.
The victims were predominantly from the poorest parts of the metropolis and nearby provinces, generally jobless and lured by the show's promise of instant millions.
Some came from as far as the Visayas.
The victims included the elderly, pregnant women, toddlers, entire families or neighborhoods who since Monday had taken shelter in jeepneys or slept on mattresses and newspapers in the open street leading to the gates of the Arena.
Many of the dead were women crushed against a closed steel gate at the bottom of a slope or trampled underfoot. At least one child was killed, hospital officials said.
It was not the first stampede to occur at the Arena.
President Macapagal-Arroyo ordered a thorough probe and the "submission of results within 72 hours," Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said.
Bunye said Transportation and Communications Secretary Leandro Mendoza had ordered the National Telecommunications Commission to look into any "possible culpability" of ABS-CBN (owned and managed by the Lopez family).
In a text message later, Bunye said that Local Government Undersecretary Marius Corpus, chair of a fact-finding team, had subpoenaed ABS-CBN executive Charo Santos-Concio, Wowowee host Willie Revillame, the head of the affair's organizing committee and the chief of the security of the Ultra event to appear before the DILG at 1 p.m. today.
Show cancelled
ABS-CBN cancelled the anniversary celebration of one of its most-watched TV shows, which has sparked a ratings battle with other noon shows, particularly "Eat Bulaga."
About 50,000 people were waiting to get inside the stadium when the mayhem erupted, Pasig Mayor Vicente Eusebio said, according to the Associated Press.
Casualty reports were conflicting.
The Eastern Police District listed 79 dead and 328 injured as of 7:30 p.m. But Philippine Red Cross chairman Sen. Richard Gordon said the official Red Cross count was 74 dead, including one person who died of injuries last night at the Medical City.
Vice President Noli de Castro also initially reported 79 killed but later said he was told by health department authorities there had been a double-counting of names.
ABS-CBN officials told reporters their figure was 70 dead but its website, at 6:25 p.m., reported 79 killed.
The deaths occurred in a fairly small area of a passageway leading into the football field, suggesting the victims were trapped in a spot where they had nowhere else to go. The spot where they died bore no bloodstains.
Guard Juner Empelina recalled seeing entire rows of bodies falling over and three more layers of bodies piling up on top of them.
Six hours after the stampede, some of the injured were still checking into hospitals.
Eusebio said the melee erupted as the crowd pushed and surged toward the gates, pinning and trampling those in front.
"The gates were being partially opened then shut," said Myrna Britania, 42, who had spent all night in line and was one of the injured. "People at the back of the line were pushing not knowing there were already people dead lying on the ground in front."
Eusebio and police denied reports that the stampede was caused by somebody shouting "Bomb! bomb!"
Several hours after the incident, tearful survivors were still looking for missing parents, children or relatives.
Half-eaten food
The once-swarming street outside the stadium was strewn with slippers and shoes, bags, umbrellas, articles of clothing, and half-eaten food.
Oddly, though, the day's tragedy seemed to reveal something bizarre in the Filipino psyche: Instead of going home, thousands of Wowowee fans who made it to the stadium before the stampede decided to stay put, holding on to their tickets and their seats, still hoping the show would go on.
By 1:30 p.m., comic host Revillame, reduced to a sobbing, bowed figure, climbed the stage and apologized to the galleries and those watching from their homes.
"Nobody wanted this to happen. I hope you understand that today's show is being cancelled," he said in Filipino. "Let's pray for those who died or were hurt this morning."
Noli's appeal
His show, he said, was for "Filipinos who think they have lost all hope."
The audience cheered him on, some shouting "It's not your fault, Willie!"
From backstage, De Castro, who was once ABS-CBN's biggest media celebrity, joined Revillame to appeal for calm and understanding.
"It's not proper that we continue having fun here while there are 79 people dead and more than 200 others injured in hospitals right now," De Castro said.
De Castro led the crowd in a minute of silence for the victims.
Security lapse?
"There appears to be a lapse in security," Mayor Eusebio told the Inquirer. "The management got a permit from the City Hall, but they should have also coordinated with us for the security measures, especially with a crowd this big."
Most of those killed were brought to the Medical City before they were transferred to the Arlington Funeral Homes in Pasig City.
"We did not expect this would happen. We just want to make people happy every day. We hope people will understand that we just wanted to help," Revillame said in a press conference at the Arena.
Outside, other hosts of the programs hugged one another and broke into tears. Soon, ABS-CBN officials, including its chair and owner Gabby Lopez, arrived.
'We're devastated'
"It's insensitive to continue the show," said ABS-CBN's Concio. "We're all devastated."
The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines offered prayers and condolences.
"Our hearts bleed in sorrow for the victims who, coming from the poorest of the poor, had no other intention but to be entertained and probably get some prizes given out by the show," CBCP President and Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo said.
President in black
Ms Arroyo formed a five-man team to look into the tragedy.
De Castro said the team would be composed of representatives from the DILG, the local government of Pasig, the Department of Health, the Office of Civil Defense, and the National Capital Region Police Office.
The team will find out what really happened, who was responsible, and recommend measures to prevent a repeat of the tragedy.
The President wore a black blouse when she left Malacanang at noon to visit the injured being treated at the Rizal Medical Hospital. She was seen on TV kneeling down in front of a middle-aged woman who had suffered a leg injury.
Caused by poverty
"The Ultra stampede is the real state of the economy. It's not P51 to the dollar. It's 70 lives to the peso," said Sanlakas president Wilson Fortaleza.
Bayan secretary general Renato Reyes said: "The real tragedy is the poverty that pushes people to pin their hopes in game shows. That is what is saddening."
Yesterday's incident was not the first time fans had stampeded to try and watch an ABS-CBN show.
In Cebu last year, chairs and pieces of metal railings flew as zealous spectators surged toward the stage during a mall show of the network. No one was hurt among the spectators but some the stars suffered bruises.
Network officials said their shows in the provinces were peaceful.
In 2003, eight people were injured when crowds jostled their way into the Philsports football field to watch Taiwanese celebrities Vaness Wu, Ken Zhu and Barbie Xu.
In September 2005, four young men were trampled to death in a stampede during a rock concert at the Amoranto Stadium in Quezon City. Gil C. Cabacungan Jr., Cynthia D. Balana, Norman Bordadora, Tina Santos