President Yoon Suk Yeol released a statement to the nation and announced a national mourning period over the deadly crowd crush that killed at least 151 people in Seoul.

Addressing the nation on Sunday morning at the presidential office, President Yoon said that a tragic accident occurred in the middle of Seoul on Saturday, and the tragedy and disaster should never have happened.

[Sound bite: President Yoon Suk Yeol (Korean-English)]
"I express my sincere condolences to those who were killed and hope those who were injured in the tragic accident recover swiftly. I would also like to deliver my condolences to the families that lost precious loved ones. As the president responsible for the lives and safety of the people, I feel devastated as I am deeply saddened. I would like to designate a period of national mourning from Sunday until the situation is brought under control and place a top priority on follow-up measures to deal with the aftermath of the accident."

The president also pledged a thorough investigation into the cause of the accident to prevent a recurrence of similar accidents and make fundamental improvements.

After making his address, Yoon visited the site of the accident with government officials.

Earlier on Sunday, the president convened an emergency meeting of government officials to coordinate response efforts.