At least 11 people including three minors were killed Wednesday after a temple chariot procession came into contact with a high-voltage wire in India, police said.<\/p>\n
Initial indications suggested that the crowd used water to contain an initial fire after the top of the chariot touched the wire in the southern state of Tamil Nadu.<\/p>\n
At least 15 other people were hospitalised after the incident at around 3:00 am (2130 GMT) in the city of Thanjavur.<\/p>\n
The top of the chariot was heavily decorated and that is the part that hit the wire, senior police officer V Balakrishnan told AFP.<\/p>\n
The victims were part of the team that was pulling the chariot. At least three people died on the spot.<\/p>\n
Hundreds of devotees took part in the procession which has taken place annually for around 90 years.<\/p>\n
A senior police official told broadcaster NDTV that the power line along the temple route is usually turned off but this time it was kept on.<\/p>\n
Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted that he was pained by the accident and announced relief of approximately $2,600 to the families of the dead.<\/p>\n
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11 electrocuted during temple procession in India - Macau Business<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" At least 11 people including three minors were killed Wednesday after a temple chariot procession came into contact with a high-voltage wire in India, police said. Continue reading