Two killed in panic at temple in India, police say
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Police officials standing guard near the site of a stampede at the Mansa Devi temple in Haridwar, on July 27.
PHOTO: AFP
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LUCKNOW, India - At least two people were killed when a crowd panicked after an electric wire snapped outside a temple in India’s northern state of Uttar Pradesh, the authorities said.
District Magistrate Shashank Tripathi said a group of monkeys jumped onto an electric wire outside the Ausaneshwar Mahadev Temple in the Barabanki region, causing it to snap and fall on a shed, triggering panic.
At least 19 people were electrocuted and injured, he said.
A senior police officer, who did not want to be named, told Reuters: “Two people were killed today in a stampede-like situation (at the temple) early in the morning.”
The incident occurred at around 2am, the area’s chief medical officer said, when some people at the temple “came in contact” with the electric wire, causing the panic.
Accidents involving large crowds are not uncommon at religious gatherings in India, and are often blamed on poor crowd management.
At least 30 people were killed in a pre-dawn crowd crush at the Maha Kumbh (Great Pitcher) festival in Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj in January, as tens of millions gathered to take a dip in sacred river waters on its most auspicious day.
Six people were also killed in a stampede in neighbouring Uttarakhand state’s Haridwar on July 27, where a large crowd gathered to offer prayers at the Mansa Devi temple. REUTERS
