BHUBANESHWAR - A fire swept through straw shelters at a Hindu convention in eastern India yesterday, killing at least 120 devotees and injuring 165.
The Home Secretary of Orissa state, Mr S.C. Hota, said in the state capital, Bhubaneshwar, that 12,000 people were attending the conference in Baripada when the blaze tore through thatched huts erected for the event.
According to Mr Hota, strong winds fanned the fire, which broke out at about 10 a.m. Irish time and swiftly engulfed the camp in Baripada, 220 km north of the state capital.
Most of the victims were men napping after lunch at the national convention, dedicated to the memory of the Hindu guru Nigamananda. Women and children attending the conventions were in a separate area of the camp.