Current:Home > reviewsStampede at religious event in India kills more than 100, mostly women and children -Golden Horizon Investments
Stampede at religious event in India kills more than 100, mostly women and children
View
Date:2025-04-21 20:28:08
LUCKNOW, India (AP) — Thousands of people at a religious gathering in India rushed to leave a makeshift tent, setting off a stampede Tuesday that killed more than 100 and left scores injured, officials said.
It was not immediately clear what triggered the panic following an event with a Hindu guru known locally as Bhole Baba. Local news reports cited authorities who said heat and suffocation in the tent could have been a factor. Video of the aftermath showed the structure appeared to have collapsed.
At least 116 people died, most of them women and children, said Prashant Kumar, the director-general of police in northern India’s state of Uttar Pradesh, where the stampede occurred.
More than 80 others were injured and admitted to hospitals, senior police officer Shalabh Mathur said.
“People started falling one upon another, one upon another. Those who were crushed died. People there pulled them out,” witness Shakuntala Devi told the Press Trust of India news agency.
Relatives wailed in distress as bodies of the dead, placed on stretchers and covered in white sheets, lined the grounds of a local hospital. A bus that arrived there carried more victims, whose bodies were lying on the seats inside.
Deadly stampedes are relatively common around Indian religious festivals, where large crowds gather in small areas with shoddy infrastructure and few safety measures.
Police officer Rajesh Singh said there was likely overcrowding at the event in a village in Hathras district about 350 kilometers (220 miles) southwest of the state capital, Lucknow.
Initial reports said organizers had permission to host about 5,000 people, but more than 15,000 came for the event by the Hindu preacher, who used to be a police officer in the state before he left his job to give religious sermons. He has led other such gatherings over the last two decades.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered condolences to the families of the dead and said the federal government was working with state authorities to ensure the injured received help.
Uttar Pradesh’s chief minister, Yogi Adityanath, called the stampede “heart-wrenching” in a post on X. He said authorities were investigating.
“Look what happened and how many people have lost their lives. Will anyone be accountable?” Rajesh Kumar Jha, a member of parliament, told reporters. He said the stampede was a failure by the state and federal governments to manage large crowds, adding that “people will keep on dying” if authorities do not take safety protocols seriously enough.
In 2013, pilgrims visiting a temple for a popular Hindu festival in central Madhya Pradesh state trampled each other amid fears that a bridge would collapse. At least 115 were crushed to death or died in the river.
In 2011, more than 100 Hindu devotees died in a crush at a religious festival in the southern state of Kerala.
___
Pathi reported from New Delhi.
veryGood! (76)
Related
- SFO's new sensory room helps neurodivergent travelers fight flying jitters
- Polish prime minister to ask voters if they accept thousands of illegal immigrants
- Does flood insurance cover ... this? A comprehensive guide to basement, rain, storm damage.
- An abandoned desert village an hour from Dubai offers a glimpse at the UAE’s hardscrabble past
- Why Sean "Diddy" Combs Is Being Given a Laptop in Jail Amid Witness Intimidation Fears
- Bruce Willis' wife Emma Heming opens up about mental health toll of dementia caretaking
- England beats Australia 3-1 to move into Women’s World Cup final against Spain
- The Chrysler 300 roars into the great car history books after a final Dream Cruise
- Jorge Ramos reveals his final day with 'Noticiero Univision': 'It's been quite a ride'
- I Tried a $10 Makeup Melting Cleanser That Olivia Culpo Recommended and It’s a Total Game-Changer
Ranking
- Rolling Loud 2024: Lineup, how to stream the world's largest hip hop music festival
- The Blind Side's Quinton Aaron Defends Sandra Bullock From Critics Amid Michael Oher-Tuohy Lawsuit
- Britney Spears and Sam Asghari Break Up After One Year of Marriage
- 'It's aggressive': Gas stations in Indiana town to close overnight due to rise in crimes
- Former Danish minister for Greenland discusses Trump's push to acquire island
- 'The Blind Side' subject Michael Oher's blockbuster lawsuit against Tuohy family explained
- Keke Palmer Shades Darius Jackson in Music Video for Usher's Boyfriend
- A year in, landmark U.S. climate policy drives energy transition but hurdles remain
Recommendation
California DMV apologizes for license plate that some say mocks Oct. 7 attack on Israel
Lahaina in pictures: Before and after the devastating Maui wildfires
Inmates at California women’s prison sue federal government over sexual abuse
Amid controversy, Michael Oher of 'The Blind Side' fame attends book signing in Mississippi
South Korean president's party divided over defiant martial law speech
Britney Spears and Sam Asghari Break Up After One Year of Marriage
Family, fortune, and the fight for Osage headrights
Trump and allies face racketeering charges in Georgia — here's what to know about sentencing for RICO convictions
Like
- Juan Soto to be introduced by Mets at Citi Field after striking record $765 million, 15
- Behind the Scenes in the Senate, This Scientist Never Gave Up on Passing the Inflation Reduction Act. Now He’s Come Home to Minnesota
- Express Lanes extension to Fredericksburg on Interstate 95 in Virginia set to open