Stampede in Gandhi Maidan Patna: A Medico-legal Analysis

A stampede is a disastrous event in which a crowd of people collectively begins running with no clear direction causing large number of casualties. This usually occurs during religious pilgrimages, professional sporting or in times of panic, as in fire or explosion when large number of people try to get away from a close space like theatre, fair etc. On 3^rd October 2014, during Dussahera celebration at Gandhi Maidan Patna, when people were returning back after watching the ―Ravan Vadh‖ on the rumor of fall of live electric wire in the ground, crowd started running to get away and some of them were fallen and crushed by the unruly mob leading to heavy casualty.

In this accident 33 deaths occur and most of them (81.82%) were females and of younger age group. Multiple blunt force injuries especially on chest and abdomen were seen in most of the cases. Cause of death was Traumatic Asphyxia (54.55%) and Shock and hemorrhage (39.39%) in most of the cases. The cases of head injury were few, seen in only in 6.06% cases.