K-Pop Star Was Killed in Seoul Crowd Crush

One of the two Americans killed in the deadly Seoul crowd crush tragedy was the niece of a US congressman from Ohio, Rep. Brad Wenstrup. "Monica and I, and our entire family, are grieving the loss of our niece Anne Marie Gieske. She was a gift from God to our family. We loved her so much," the lawmaker said in a statement posted by his office. The 20-year-old was a third-year nursing student at the University of Kentucky. "She felt that her calling was in nursing and helping people and taking care of others," the band director at her high school tells WLWT, noting that she made a point to return to the school over the summer to volunteer helping the marching band.

Also among the 156 killed in the devastation was Lee Ji-han, 24, whom Deadline describes as "a rising star on the South Korean K-pop scene." The singer and actor got his start as a contestant on a Korean singing competition; then, in 2019, he was cast in a Korean drama. "We are sad to deliver such news today, but Lee Ji-han has passed away in the crush in Itaewon," his agency says in a statement. The statement notes that Lee's family is in "deep grief," CNN reports. (More Seoul stories.)