Duisburg - A mourning ceremony was held in Duisberg on Monday to pay homage to stampede victims during Germany's famed Love Parade festival.
The death toll from the mass panic has risen to 19 and at least 342 others were injured in the crush, according to police.
"I saw people died in front of me. We tried our best, but it was in vain," said an emergency worker, who was among the first rescuers to arrive at the scene after the panic broke out.
The victims, aged between 20 and 40, were trampled to death as they scrambled to escape from a crush in a narrow 100m tunnel that served as the only entrance to the grounds of the popular event, police said.
At the entrance to the tunnel, dozens of candles were lit and an impromptu remembrance board with signatures and messages lamenting the dead was set up.
There were also messages demanding explanations for the tragedy. Doubts were cast about whether the event should take place in the small city. First hosted in Berlin in 1989, the Love Parade left the capital in 2007 and has since been held in several other German cities.
"I saw people lying on the ground, being passed over by those frantically trying to escape, but there was no exit," said a mourner.
Chancellor Angela Merkel expressed her sorrow over the catastrophe and called for an intensive investigation. "This was a very, very dreadful and sad day," Merkel said. "We must do everything we can to ensure that something like this never happens again."
Rainer Schaller, chief organiser of the parade, said the event, one of the biggest techno festivals in Europe, would not be held again out of respect for the victims and their families.
