Andhra: Techie couple among seven killed in wall collapse at Simhachalam temple

Officials have confirmed seven deaths following the completion of the rescue operation by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the police. Earlier reports had indicated eight fatalities. The victims include four men and three women. Three injured devotees have been hospitalized at King George Hospital in Visakhapatnam.

Visakhapatnam: A techie couple are among seven devotees killed in a wall collapse during an annual festival at Sri Varaha Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple at Simhachalam here in the early hours of Wednesday.

The officials have confirmed seven deaths as the rescue operation was completed by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the police. Initial reports had put the death toll at eight.

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The deceased include four men and three women. Three devotees, who were injured, have been admitted to King George Hospital in Visakhapatnam.

A techie couple from the Visakhapatnam district was among the victims of the tragic accident. Pilla Uma Maheswara Rao (30) and Pilla Sailaja (26) were employed with HCL and Infosys in Hyderabad, and were working from home.

The couple, who married three years ago, hailed from Chandrapalem village in Madhurawada of Visakhapatnam.

Sailaja’s mother, Venkat Ratna (45), and aunt G. Mahalakshmi (65) were also killed in the wall collapse.

The other deceased were identified as Durgaswamy Naidu (33) and K. Manikantha (28), both residents of East Godavari district, and Yedla Venkat Rao (45) of Visakhapatnam.

The incident occurred around 3.15 a.m. when devotees were queued up to buy tickets for darshan during Chandanotsavam, an annual festival.

The devotees were waiting to buy Rs 300 tickets for ‘Nijaroopa darshanam’. During the annual festival, the thick sandalwood covering on the idol will be removed. The rituals were to begin in the early hours of the day.

The NDRF personnel rushed to the spot and launched the rescue operation with the help of police and other personnel.

Home Minister Vangalapudi Anitha, Visakhapatnam district Collector M.N. Harendhira Prasad, and Police Commissioner Shanka Brata Bagchi supervised the rescue operations.

Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan, IT Minister Nara Lokesh and other ministers expressed shock over the incident.

The Chief Minister ordered a probe by a three-member committee. He also announced Rs 25 lakh ex gratia each for the families of the deceased and Rs 3 lakh each to the injured.