[News Today] Firefighter dies from crowd crush trauma

[LEAD]
A firefighter in his 30s who took part in rescue operations during the Itaewon crowd crush has been found dead, ten days after going missing. He had been suffering from depression since the tragedy.

[REPORT]
The Halloween crowd crush in Itaewon, Seoul led to the loss of more than 150 lives.

On August 10, a firefighter surnamed Park who had been mobilized for rescue operations during the tragedy went missing.

He was last seen parking his car at the shoulder of the road near a highway tollgate. Then he vanished.

At around 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday, he was found dead under a bridge in Siheung, Gyeonggi-do Province.

Police was conducting a search around the region after identifying his travel route through surveillance cameras.

On Wednesday, they found Park's body in a location eight kilometers away from where his car was parked.

This comes ten days after a report about his disappearance was filed.

On August 9, Park disappeared and went out of contact after leaving a message of apology to his friends.

The Incheon Fire Headquarters said that Park had been receiving psychological counseling since the Itaewon tragedy.

It seems that despite the 12 counseling and medical therapy sessions he received until April this year, he continued to suffer from trauma.

Seo Min-ki / Gov't Employees' Union Incheon firefighters branch
Firefighters work in a hierarchical environment. Even if they have trauma, they tend to not speak out about it.

The National Fire Agency said that even a year after the crowd crush occurred, over 1,300 firefighters received medical treatment for the mental trauma they sustained from the tragedy.

Prof. Baek Jong-woo/ Kyung Hee Univ.
It was reported that sharing their stories was helpful for firefighters to detect trauma early.

The association of the crowd crush victims' families issued a statement and paid condolences over Park's death, expressing grief and anguish.