25 Indian devotees fall into temple well

Police and emergency workers were trying Thursday to rescue up to 25 Indian devotees who were trapped inside a well after a floor caved in at a Hindu temple, an official and media reports said. The floor, which doubled as a cover for the stepwell – an often large, stair-lined communal water source – collapsed on Thursday, sending worshippers plunging downwards at the temple in the central city of Indore. “The rescue is continuing. Some 20-25 people are trapped inside the well after the roof collapsed,” police official Manish Kapooriya told AFP. Television footage showed emergency workers using ropes and ladders to reach those trapped in the well in Madhya Pradesh state. Other videos showed the caved-in floor and mangled steel bars, and policemen using ropes to seal the area. Temples across India were brimming with devotees on the occasion of Ram Navami, the birthday of the Hindu deity Lord Ram. AFP