14 killed in stampede at mosque in northwest China

USPA News - Fourteen people were killed Sunday when a stampede occurred while traditional food was being handed out as part of a religious ceremony at a mosque in northwest China, local authorities said on Monday. Ten others were injured, some of them seriously.

The incident happened at around 1 p.m. local time on Sunday at the Beida mosque near the city of Guyuan in Xiji county, located in the autonomous region of Ningxia in China`s northwest. It occurred as a record number of worshippers attended the annual ceremony because it fell on the weekend. The regional government said traditional cakes were being handed out to the participants when the stampede occurred, killing 14 people and injuring 10 others. Mao Minna, whose daughter was among the injured, told the state-run Xinhua news agency that people trampled each other as they rushed for the food. "Currently, the injured are in a stable condition, but four seriously injured people have been transferred to Guyuan City Hospital for treatment," a spokesperson for the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region government said. "The fourteen deceased have been taken home in preparation for their burials." Authorities met on Monday to discuss the incident and blamed the stampede on poor organization and insufficient management, urging for an increase in religious oversight to avoid similar incidents in the future. They also pledged to carry out a "safety overhaul" during the first quarter of the year, Xinhua said.