No fewer than 29 people have died in a stampede at a church gathering in Monrovia, Liberia’s capital, a government official said on Thursday.
Children were also said to be among the dead.
Jalawah Tompo, Deputy Minister for press and propaganda at the Ministry of Information, Cultural Affairs & Tourism, said the stampede occurred around midnight.
“The doctors said 29 persons died and some are on the critical list,” Tompo said. “This is a sad day for the country.”
According to Moses Carter, a police spokesman, the death toll is provisional and “may increase” since many individuals are in critical condition.
President George Weah is expected to visit the site on Thursday afternoon.
Details of the incident are sketchy. According to local media, the event was a Christian prayer gathering in New Kru Town, a working-class suburb of Monrovia, called a “crusade.”
In Liberia, a highly religious country with a majority of Christians, gatherings of this type typically attract thousands of people.
Social media images suggest that popular preacher Abraham Kromah hosted a two-day prayer event in New Kru Town and attracted large crowds.
Several robbers were reported to have attacked worshippers with knives and machetes, prompting a stampede.
