Mexican health authorities said on Wednesday that four people died during large celebrations in downtown Mexico City after the national team secured a place in the round of 16 of the World Cup by defeating Ecuador.
Two women and a man were found unconscious on streets near the famous Angel of Independence monument, where thousands gathered to celebrate on Tuesday evening, Mexico City’s Health Secretariat said on the social platform X. The victims, who authorities said died of asphyxia, were 48, 44 and 19 years old. The authorities did not provide any further information about the circumstances of the death.
Later on Wednesday, Mexico City Health Minister Nadine Gasman told a news conference that another man, aged about 30, was treated by emergency workers after suffering an epileptic seizure, convulsions and gastrointestinal bleeding. He died shortly afterwards in a hospital of cardiac arrest.
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Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada said on social media that rescue workers responded immediately after receiving a report of the three unconscious people, but they had already died.
Brugada also urged the public to celebrate “responsibly, carefully and with sensitivity.”
Fireworks lit up the sky around the Independence Monument – popularly called “El Ángel” – on Tuesday evening as thousands of Mexicans celebrated along the five-kilometer-long Paseo de la Reforma, which connects the capital’s main square, the Zócalo, with Chapultepec Park.
In a video posted on social media on Tuesday, Brugada said about 1.4 million people were celebrating in the streets and urged the public to stop going downtown to ease overcrowding. Instead, she encouraged people to attend a concert by a popular cumbia band in the east part of the city.
The whole of Mexico City seemed to be overwhelmed on Tuesday evening. Improvised bands formed on street corners while rocket-laden carts called “Toritos” inched their way through streets so crowded that people could barely move.
Bottles of alcohol were passed from hand to hand between young revelers as hundreds more tried to push closer to the city center. Some succeeded, but many others defied the pressure of the crowd.
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