37 die during Chinese festivities

At least 37 people were killed and 15 others injured today when a crowd stampeded during a holiday gathering outside Beijing on the final day of China’s Lunar New Year celebrations.

Many of them suffocated, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

Officials from President Hu Jintao on down immediately expressed “deep concern” and ordered an investigation, and the mayor of Beijing went to the scene to supervise.

“This is a very serious incident,” said Wu Kun, a spokesman for the Beijing city government. “There could even be more people dead. It’s still a very confusing scene up there.”

The accident happened in Miyun County, a northern suburb of the Chinese capital.

Wu said it occurred at 7.45pm (11.45pm Irish time) in a popular gathering spot called Mihong Park near the town of Miyun when someone tripped on a bridge in a crowded area, causing a chain reaction.

“One person fell down on a grate in the park and caused many people to fall down. There was a stampede,” Wu said. ”It was a lot of people. I’m not sure how many. These things are packed,” he said.

Premier Wen Jiabao ordered local authorities to find out how the accident happened and “to try their best to save the injured and make suitable arrangement for the families of the dead.”

The Lantern Festival is a celebration that marks the last night of the Chinese Lunar New Year celebration.

Miyun County is about 45 miles north of central Beijing and is the site of Miyun Reservoir, one of the largest in China and a key supply of water to the Chinese capital.

It is technically within the administrative limits of Beijing, which is actually a large district that includes the city and sprawling surrounding areas.

Chinese have been celebrating Lunar New Year since January 22, and Thursday night was the final night – a nationwide celebration of lanterns and lights.

Scores of Chinese have been killed in car accidents across the country during the festivities as hundreds of millions travel to ancestral homes and back to cities.