More lives could have been saved in the Itaewon crowd crush, had the country's emergency medical resources been mobilized more effectively, according to medical experts. They called for improvements to the medical response system in the wake of the tragic accident on Oct. 29, which killed at least 156 people and injured nearly 200. In particular, they pointed out the absence of a “control tower” to take charge and delegate tasks during emergencies, along with poor communication between related authorities such as the fire agency, medical personnel and law enforcers.