Oktoberfest Temporarily Closed Due to Overcrowding, Triggering Panic
Munich, Germany – Oktoberfest, the world-renowned folk festival, was temporarily shut down Saturday evening due to overwhelming crowds, leading to panic and a brief evacuation of the Theresienwiese festival grounds.The closure occured after visitor numbers reached critical mass, halting movement and prompting calls for emergency assistance.
The situation escalated around 5 pm as a shift change at the beer tents coincided with an influx of attendees, creating an exceptionally dense crowd. Witnesses described being “just pushed” with no ability to move in either direction. “It was absolutely crazy, I’ve never experienced anything like that,” one festival-goer told media outlets. Reports quickly surfaced on social media detailing widespread fear, with one Instagram user stating, “Adult men trembled and cried on the ground, everyone was on a massive panic border.”
Police initiated an organized evacuation and directed those wishing to leave to utilize Goetheplatz, Theresienwiese, or Schwantalarhe metro stations. A police spokesperson confirmed that some streets surrounding the festival became impassable due to the sheer volume of people, stating, “There were just too many.”
The festival grounds reopened around 7:30 pm Saturday, following a police assessment. Despite the reopening, concerns regarding security measures persisted, with social media users criticizing the festival’s handling of the crowds. Another eyewitness described the scene as “extremely chaotic,” reporting people being crushed together and struggling to breathe, with personal belongings lost amidst the chaos.
