At the conclusion of a fireworks display on Okura Beach in Akashi, Hyōgo, Japan, 11 people are killed and more than 120 are injured when a pedestrian footbridge connecting the beach to JR Asagiri Station becomes overcrowded and people leaving the event fall down in a domino effect.
The Akashi pedestrian bridge accident (, Akashi hodky jiko) was a human crush that occurred on 21 July 2001 in Akashi, Hygo, Japan. In the incident, a large crowd of people packed into a partially enclosed pedestrian overpass leading to Asagiri Station after a fireworks show. The resulting crush killed 11 people, including two adults and nine children, and injured 247 others. Five civic and security officials were later convicted of professional negligence for not preventing the disaster.
Akashi (明石市, Akashi-shi) is a city located in southern Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, on the Seto Inland Sea west of Kobe. As of April 1, 2017, the city has an estimated population of 294,312 and a population density of 6,000 persons per km2. The total area is 49.22 square kilometres (19 sq mi).