Fire Tragedy Averted At Venkateswara Temple In Tirupati Days After Stampede; How Swift Action By Staff Saved Many Lives?

A major tragedy was averted at Sri Venkateswara Temple of Tirumala in Andhra Pradesh's Tirupati district on Monday. According to reports, the temple staff noticed a minor fire caused by a short circuit at a laddu counter. They immediately swung into action and extinguished the fire.

The incident took place at the 47th laddu counter of the temple, reported Deccan Chronicle. No injuries have been reported. The blaze reportedly erupted due to an electrical malfunction.

Video Of The Incident:

The swift action by the temple staff prevented the fire from spreading to other parts of the holy shrine and saved many lives. Notably, the temple is dedicated to Venkateswara, a form of Vishnu. It is also known as Sri Venkateswara Swami Temple.

January 8 Stampede At The Temple Claimed Six Lives:

The incident took place days after a broke out inside the temple on January 8. The mishap occurred at a time when devotees from across the country had gathered at the temple for the 10-day Vaikuntha Dwara Darshanam period which is to begin on January 11.

About 4000 devotees were queueing up for special darshan tokens. Multiple media reports have said that a woman devotee now identified as Mallika suddenly fell ill while she was waiting in the queue, which was for one of the token counters at Bairagi Pattida Park. The gates were opened in order to take Mallika to the hospital. It reportedly triggered the stampede.

As the gate was opened. The crowd took advantage of this and rushed forward. The sudden entry of thousands of people overwhelmed the temple officials who were at the scene. The massive throng of thousands of people triggered a stampede that resulted in six deaths.

Published on: Monday, January 13, 2025, 02:45 PM IST