UPDATE: 5:30 a.m. ET: The death toll from the stampede has risen to 36 people, and the Shanghai government has said 47 others received hospital treatment following the incident. Thirteen of those were seriously injured in the chaotic crush, but seven of the injured had left hospitals by Thursday afternoon.
The Shanghai government information office said one Taiwanese was among the dead, and two Taiwanese and one Malaysian were among the injured.
UPDATE: 6:15 p.m. ET: Distressed friends and family members of the victims have descended upon Shanghai No.1 People's Hospital, the facility treating the injured, which reportedly number around 42.
As tensions mount at the hospital, local police have erected a makeshift barricade within the hospital to hold off angry family members as information about the injured trickles out.
The initial cause of the stampede remains a mystery, but some witnesses report that one possible cause may have been fake money that was thrown from a balcony during the event.
Local witness #StampedeSH: some people "splashed money" at luxury club Bund 18 in Shanghai, triggering stampede NYEve pic.twitter.com/DNyZ6tLUUV— George Chen (@george_chen) December 31, 2014
More images are beginning to emerge from the area that offer a better idea of the magnitude of the tragic event.
Shanghai Stampede happened after money like bills were being thrown to crowd from a top a building pic.twitter.com/N23xAlbGww Via @PDChina— Emilie (@paintsandsings) January 1, 2015
Breaking: 35 dead in stampede at #NewYear's on #Shanghai's famous riverfront Bund where huge crowds gathered pic.twitter.com/vbSDYqUF8S— Jim Sciutto (@jimsciutto) December 31, 2014
Local media: large number of injured people sent to Shanghai No.1 People's Hospital; SH Police try to maintain order pic.twitter.com/ctTwvGSibX— George Chen (@george_chen) December 31, 2014
Family and friends seen in distress at Shanghai hospitals after deadly New Year stampede http://t.co/xqDmzGLTLF pic.twitter.com/aNm1q61wcH— ITV News (@itvnews) December 31, 2014
Original story:
As Asia kicks off 2015, one New Year's celebration in Shanghai, China has resulted in 35 deaths and 42 injuries.
China's CCTV America reports that the event, held in Chen Yi Square, near a waterfront area called the Bund, devolved into a stampede.
The sudden crowd movement happened around 11:35pm local time, according to the BBC. No official explanation of the tragic event has yet been offered.
[seealso slug="times-square-new-years-eve"]
A number of Twitter users have posted photos of the stampede's aftermath:
#BREAKING Reports of 35 dead, 42 injured in a stampede in #Shanghai at NYE celebration. http://t.co/4C2GefzEqP pic.twitter.com/21ZLea4Ydo— CCTV America (@CCTV_America) December 31, 2014
#突发 【上海外滩发生踩踏事件 致多人倒地不起】今天凌晨1点左右，记者经与上海市医疗急救中心联系，基本确定，今晚上海外滩发生踩踏事故，多人受伤，其中部分重伤。对于是否有人员死亡的问题，该中心工作人员拒绝回应，只告知抢救工作正在进行中 pic.twitter.com/13dCGmLy6N— 贝带劲 (@beidaijin) December 31, 2014
Photos from friends in Shanghai: Police now take control of accident area where stampede happened on New Year's Eve pic.twitter.com/c8kRTz7nCX— George Chen (@george_chen) December 31, 2014
The Associated Press contributed to this report.