Nine people died on Saturday in El Salvador when they were trampled during a stampede of fans trying to get into the Cuscatlan stadium in the capital of San Salvador to watch a first division football match, police in the Central American country said.

The National Police tweeted that there were “nine casualties”, adding that at least two other people were injured and were hospitalized in “critical condition”.

According to local media, of the total number of victims of this tragedy, 500 people were taken to hospitals.

Among the dead were seven men and two women.

Fans gathered to watch an important national league match between Alianza and FAS.

Hundreds of people tried to enter the platforms at the same time, causing an avalanche of people, as described by local authorities. Many were trampled, and the deaths of nine people were attributed mainly to suffocation. Dozens of fans broke down the door and entered the stadium’s playing area, where a makeshift first aid kit was installed.

Source: APE-MPE, Reuters, Infobae.