42 killed in flood relief stampede

Thousands of flood victims waiting in line for relief vouchers stampeded into a government-run distribution centre in southern India today, killing at least 42 people and injuring another 30, police said.

The stampede occurred after nearly 3,000 people lined up before dawn along a narrow street leading to a school in Madras where they were to collect coupons for provisions, R Nataraj, the city's police chief, said.