At least two women have lost their lives in eastern India in a stampede at a religious festival attended by tens of thousands of people.

The incident took place on Saturday at the Rath Yatra, or Chariot Festival, in the temple town of Puri in Odisha State, Indian media quoted local police as saying.

“One woman complained of chest pain and was taken to the hospital where she succumbed to her illness. The second woman’s death appears to be a case of exertion and suffocation. No external injuries were found on their bodies,” Odisha Director General of Police Sanjiv Marik said.

At least 10 people were also injured in the melee, with two of them being in critical condition.

The stampede occurred when the festival started, sending the crowd swelling and surging toward the chariot that was being carried in a procession.

Indians are no stranger to deadly stampedes during religious festivals, when many people gather in small places that lack safety or crowd control measures.

On July 14, at least 27 people were killed in another stampede on a riverbank in southern India’s Andhra Pradesh State, where tens of thousands of pilgrims had assembled to participate in a Hindu religious bathing festival.

Two years ago, more than 110 people, mostly women and children, were killed in a stampede in the central state of Madhya Pradesh.