MADRID - An apparent stampede at a public Halloween party in Madrid early on Thursday left three girls dead and two others in critical condition, emergency services in the Spanish capital said.

Spanish police vehicles leave the Madrid Arena Stadium in Madrid November 1, 2012. An apparent stampede at a public Halloween party at the stadium early on Thursday left three girls dead and two other in critical condition, emergency services in the Spanish capital said. [Photo/Agencies]

It was not immediately known what caused the crush of people at the party, which featured electronic music and was held at the Madrid Arena in the west of the city.

"Two of the girls died there and one died later in hospital," a spokesman said.

"There was a human crush at the only exit they had because the others were sealed off," a partygoer identified as Sandra told Cadena Ser radio.

The incident recalled a mass panic at the German music festival Love Parade that killed 19 people in July 2010.