Ivory Coast stampede kills 2, wounds 30, during concert to promote peace and reconciliation

Ivory Coast stampede kills 2 during reggae concert

ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast — A Red Cross official in Ivory Coast says two people were killed and 30 wounded in a stampede at a reggae concert in the rebel-controlled city of Bouake.

Philippe Beauverd said Sunday that a team of local Red Cross workers treated 29 people at the stadium and sent one to the hospital with more serious injuries.

A witness says the crowd surged toward the sole entrance to the municipal stadium when local reggae star Alpha Blondy started playing Saturday night, crushing people against the fences.

The reggae singer organized the concert, held in the northern rebel capital of Bouake, to promote peace and reconciliation in the West African nation, which has been divided between the north and south since a failed coup attempt in 2002.