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Six dead at gig after sales exceeded capacity in Italy

Six people have died after an irritant was sprayed at an Italian rap concert causing a stampede, with 53 people reported injured, including 13 who are in a very serious condition.

Italian authorities said the organisers of the concert of rapper Sfera Ebbasta (pictured) had sold far too many tickets for the size of venue.

Ancona chief prosecutor Monica Garulli told reporters at the scene, according to Billboard, that around 1,400 tickets were sold while the venue only has an 870-person capacity.

It has since been revealed that the disco had three rooms but only used one of them, with a capacity of 469 people.

A video broadcast on Italian TV news showed a crowd of teenagers rushing out of a door toward a low wall near the exit of the Blue Lantern disco in Corinaldo, near Ancona. The barrier gave way and the stampede of young adults fell over it and on top of each other.

Those who died were aged 14 to 16, with one mother of four who had accompanied her eight-year-old to the concert, aged 39, also found dead on the scene.

According to Billboard, Italian media had quoted concertgoers suggesting that an irritant had been sprayed, which triggered the panic. Interior Minister Matteo Salvini said there apparently was a “stink” of some irritating substance.

Image: Marco Del Torchio