Four Bhavani devotees were killed when a speeding SUV rammed into them in Andhra Pradesh's Kakinada district on Thursday, police said, in an accident reported by IANS and The Hindu. At least one other devotee was injured in the incident near Kathipudi in the Prathipadu area.

According to police accounts carried by IANS, the devotees were crossing the road to have tea after the bus in which they were travelling broke down. The bus, carrying devotees from Vizianagaram district, was on its way to Vijayawada, where the group was heading for darshan at the Sri Kanaka Durga Temple.

IANS named the deceased as C. Yerraiah (38), L. Sitaram (45), T. Shivaprasad (40) and B.R. Sattibabu (40). The Hindu, citing an official release by Kakinada District Collector M.N. Harendhira Prasad, said the four were natives of Denkada village in Vizianagaram district and were among about 40 people observing the 'Bhavani Deeksha' who were travelling to Vijayawada to conclude their deeksha on Thursday.

Police rushed to the spot, shifted the injured to a local hospital and took the bodies to the Government General Hospital in Kakinada for post-mortem examination, both reports said.

Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan expressed grief over the accident. According to IANS, he said it was heartbreaking that devotees who had completed their vow and were on their way to have darshan of Kanaka Durga lost their lives midway, conveyed condolences to the families, and spoke to the Kakinada District Collector to gather details of the incident.