60 die in San Salvador religious festival
An ongoing religious festival in San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador, is marred by a spate of fatalities.

A total of 60 people have been killed by assailants or in accidents by Friday as people poured out to take part in celebrations of the Divine Savior of the World Festival which is named after the city's patron saint.

Forty of them were killed by fatal shootings, nine by fatal knifings, 10 in road accidents, and one person was drowned in the ocean, the country's civil protection authorities said, according to reports reaching here. Another 610 people were in need of special medical attention.

The Salvadoran National Civilian Police said the number of violent deaths kept rising. As more people were heading out to entertainment centers on Friday and it was certain that there would be even more emergencies during the weekend.

The police said they had deployed 13,000 members to keep order during the festival and they had redoubled patrols to prevent criminals from gathering in areas where adults and children go to enjoy the fairground rides that are part of the festival tradition.