At least nine people have died after a stampede at a football stadium in El Salvador’s capital, San Salvador, officials have said.
Police said seven men and two women were among the dead, with all the victims over the age of 18.
The crush occurred during a match between local team Alianza and Santa Ana based team Fas at the Monumental stadium.
The match was subsequently suspended.
The disaster reportedly occurred after a stampede began when a large number of fans tried to enter the venue after the gates had been closed.
The two sides had been facing off in a quarter-finals clash of the country’s premier division, and footage shared by local media appeared to show fans attempting to pull down barricades at the stadium’s entrance.
“It was an avalanche of fans who overran the gate,” a volunteer with the Rescue Commandos first aid group told journalists. “Some were still under the metal in the tunnel. Others managed to make it to the stands and then to the field and were smothered.”
Nayib Bukele, El Salvador’s president, said police would conduct an “exhaustive investigation” into what happened.