The crowd movement, which occurred Saturday in the Kanjuruhan stadium in Malang (East of the island of Java), left 131 dead.

Many spectators took refuge in the stadium's press center, having managed to flee the crowded stands towards which the police fired tear gas.

Sucipto took a man there convulsing and gasping for air.

But, like many supporters who were crushed or suffocated during the crush on Saturday, he ultimately died.

"I was shocked. It was traumatic and I ended up walking away," says the 43-year-old Indonesian, photographer for more than ten years.

After witnessing the terrible events at Kanjuruhan Stadium, Sucipto feels guilty for not rushing out that night to help other victims.

Around the stadium, many witnessed this tragedy and helped the victims of the stampede.

Edy Tanto's small stand outside the stadium was full of fans watching the derby between Malang's football team Arema FC and Persebaya Surabaya due to lack of tickets.

As soon as the final whistle blew, fans of Arema FC entered the field after their team's defeat against that of the neighboring city.

That's when everything changed.

Some supporters rushed out of the stadium.

Edy Tanto immediately offered water to the victims whose eyes were burning from tear gas.

"Not clear ideas"

“I had no clear ideas,” recalls Tanto, sitting cross-legged on the floor of his business.

"I just thought about helping them."

Some took bottles of water from his fridges, desperate for something to soothe their eyes.

Edy Tanto, who runs a stand near the stadium where a deadly stampede took place, in Malang, Indonesia on October 4, 2022 JUNI KRISWANTO AFP

"I didn't think about the money. We took pity on them when they entered (the store) staggering and short of breath," Tanto told AFP.

On the other side of the stadium, the same scenes were happening.

The owner of a food stall describes how she rushed to help supporters who were victims of tear gas and took refuge in her store, while the police did nothing.

A woman died in her small shop, she said, and police began fanning her lifeless body with cardboard.

"I was moved and I lectured them - I don't care about their ranks," said the trader, who requested anonymity for fear of reprisals from the authorities.

She says she threw them, "You knew she was dead, why did you keep fanning her?"

After this surreal moment, the manager says she massaged a woman to try to appease her.

These testimonies represent only a part of the many exemplary acts of those who were present on Saturday evening at the scene of the tragedy.

A woman holds a rose during a tribute to the victims of a stampede at the Malang football stadium in Indonesia, October 5, 2022 Juni Kriswanto AFP

Men carried unconscious victims to ambulances and supporters pulled their friends from the crush by refusing to let them go, thus saving their lives.

Like Sucipto, other journalists, photographers and videographers present that evening stopped making images to help the supporters who found themselves in the scramble while trying to leave the stadium.

"It was urgent to help because there were many victims," ​​said Sucipto.

© 2022 AFP