27 July 2019; DW: Two South Koreans have died and several others, including foreign athletes competing at the FINA World Aquatics Championships, have been injured after a balcony collapsed in a nightclub next to the athletes' village.
Local news agency Yonhap has reported that two South Koreans were killed when a balcony holding about 100 people collapsed under the weight of partygoers at around 2:30 a.m. local time on Saturday (1730 UTC on Friday).
At least 17 other people were injured.
Athletes injured
Among those injured were nine foreign aquatic athletes: four from the United States, two from New Zealand, one from the Netherlands, one from Italy and one from Brazil, Yonhap reported.
All except the Brazilians are water polo players.
"We were just dancing and then the next minute we dropped five to six meters and everyone started rushing out of the club after that," said New Zealand men's water polo team captain Matt Small.
"We ... fell on top of the heads of other people that were beneath us," he told New Zealand's Radio Sport.
Authorities have said none of the injuries were severe, ranging from bruising to lacerations on their hands or feet.
The incident occurred in a nightclub next to the athletes' village in Gwangju, South Korea, where athletes have been competing at 18th FINA World Aquatics Championships. The competition runs until Sunday.
