Yangtze Briefing | Who will be held to account for disaster on the Bund?
Many of the relatives of the 36 killed on New Year's Eve believe the lack of security and crowd control on the riverfront led to the fatal crush
As the investigation into Shanghai's deadly New Year's Eve stampede continues, some officials in the city fear for their jobs, according to government sources. Speculation is flying over which cadres might be held accountable for the disaster.
Thirty-six people died and 49 others were injured when people crowded onto the riverfront at the Bund to celebrate the new year, with many coming in the hope of watching a spectacular light show.
So far state authorities have been absent from the investigation and left the work to the city government.
This has triggered questions in the domestic media about why an accident that made headlines around the world is not being investigated by the State Council.
Meanwhile, the families of the dead are growing increasingly frustrated at the slow progress in determining the cause of the disaster and who should be held responsible.
Li Qi, a cousin of 25-year-old Li Xiang who died in the stampede, said government officials had told them to wait and declined to provide a timetable of when the investigation would be concluded. Li said there had been no discussions with officials about compensation.