A pre-dawn stampede at the world’s largest religious gathering killed at least 30 people in India on Wednesday, with many more injured after a surging crowd spilled out of a police cordon and trampled bystanders.
Deadly crowd incidents are frequent occurrence at Indian religious festivals, including the Kumbh Mela, which attracts tens of millions of devotees every 12 years to the northern city of Prayagraj.
As pilgrims rushed to participate in a sacred day of ritual bathing, people sleeping and sitting on the ground near the rivers told AFP they were trampled by huge swells of devotees coming towards them in the darkness.
“I was sitting near a barricade, and during the pushing and shoving, the entire crowd fell on top of me, trampling me as it moved forward,” Pilgrim Renu Devi, 48, told AFP.
“When the crowd surged, elderly people and women were crushed, and no one came forward to help.”
Rescue teams carrying victims from the accident site weaved through piles of clothes, shoes and other discarded belongings.
Police were seen carrying stretchers bearing the bodies of victims draped with thick blankets.
“At least 15 people” were killed with dozens more injured, a doctor at a hospital tending to survivors told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity as they were not authorised to talk to media.
Authorities have yet to officially confirm the number of dead in the stampede, which took place around 1:00 am (1930 GMT Tuesday).
