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One Dies, Dozens Treated After Crowd Surge at Puri Rath Yatra Festival
A sudden crowd surge during the annual Rath Yatra chariot festival in Puri, India, on July 16, 2026, left at least one person dead and dozens injured. Rescue teams treated 33 people before transferring them to hospitals.
Jul 16, 11:18 AM·1m read1 source
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A crowd surge during the Rath Yatra festival in Puri, Odisha state, killed at least one person and sent many others to hospitals on Thursday, July 16, 2026. Tens of thousands had gathered in the coastal town for the annual procession, according to the Press Trust of India. Odisha police said rescue teams gave first aid and oxygen to 33 people and moved them to nearby hospitals.
Videos showed injured devotees being carried away while shoes and bags remained scattered on the ground. The Rath Yatra is one of the world’s oldest and largest religious processions. It involves taking idols of Hindu deities from the Jagannath Temple and pulling them through the streets in decorated chariots.
Similar incidents have occurred at the same festival. Three people died and more than a dozen were hospitalized after a crowd surge during the 2025 event. At least 30 people died at the Maha Kumbh festival in January 2025 when pilgrims rushed toward a sacred river.
In 2013, at least 115 people were crushed or drowned at a Hindu festival in Madhya Pradesh after a panic over a bridge.
