The death toll of a fatal stampede during New Year celebrations in downtown Shanghai rose to 36 as of Thursday afternoon, China's state-run Xinhua News Agency reported.
Among the 42 injured being treated in local hospitals, 13 are suffering from serious injuries, the agency said. The tragedy happened on a crowded square of Shanghai's gleaming Bund area at around 11:35 pm (1535 GMT) Wednesday, according to the report.
Most of the injured are youths at their 20's with a majority of them being female, said the authorities in Shanghai, a metropolis home to a population of over 23 million. The Bund, a stretch of riverbank in downtown Shanghai, is a popular destination for new year celebrations, as historical architecture and skyscrapers along the river show dazzling lights at night.
Chinese President Xi Jinping asked for an immediate investigation on the cause of the stampede and urged to prevent such incidents from happening again, while police are investigating the cause of the incident. Xi added that local authorities should prioritize the safety of people's lives and property and make careful arrangements to ensure safety measures are in place.
A witness said that some coupons resembling US dollar bills were being thrown from a building's third-floor window near the Bund, and people standing along the river bank started to scramble for them.
Fatal incidents like this one were not rare in China, the world's most populous country. In September 2014, six students were killed in a stampede at a primary school after a stairway was blocked. In January 2014, a mosque stampede killed 14 people and injured another 10.