Sweltering heat kills five at India airshow

BENGALURU, Oct 07 (AFP): Soaring temperatures at a hugely crowded airshow in India where organisers had hoped to break record attendance figures left at least five people dead, media reported Monday.

Hundreds of thousands of people gathered along a beach in the blazing sun on Sunday with temperatures hitting 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit) at the airforce show in the southern city of Chennai in Tamil Nadu state.

The Press Trust of India news agency, quoting government officials, said Monday that five spectators had died from "heatstroke and exhaustion" during the airshow.

The Indian Express also quoted a police officer as saying five people had died in separate incidents due to "dehydration and stress".

One eyewitness who spoke to the newspaper said the sheer numbers of people was "suffocating", while roads were reported to be jammed with traffic and trains overcrowded.