On Sunday, Saudi Arabia announced that over 1,300 people died during this year’s Hajj pilgrimage, with over 80 percent of the deaths being attributed to heat stress and unapproved travel.
The Saudi government stated that “the health system addressed numerous cases of heat stress this year, with some individuals still under care” in its first official numbers. Unfortunately, there were 1,301 fatalities.
People Take On Hajj Pilgrimage Without Authorization
According to a statement from the Saudi administration, 83% of the dead were pilgrims who had traveled without the required authorization and had endured lengthy journeys in the scorching sun without enough shade or comfort.
It further mentioned that all of the relatives of the deceased had now been identified. Moreover, among them were elderly and chronically ill people.
One of the main causes of the many reported deaths and injuries this year has been attributed to the extreme heat, which reached a record 52 degrees Celsius (125 degrees Fahrenheit) in Mecca. The unapproved pilgrimages, in which travelers travel to Mecca without the required permits—each costing thousands of US dollars—exacerbate these difficulties; usually, these unlicensed pilgrims journey without planned comforts like air-conditioned vehicles and sufficient water and food supplies.
The Cause Of Death Of The Pilgrims
The Saudi government added that the unapproved nature of numerous Hajj pilgrimage trips made it more difficult to identify victims. As a result, the official death-toll announcement was postponed. The statement guaranteed that the right processes were followed for identification, burial, and the issuance of death certificates, notwithstanding early difficulties.
Witness accounts detail instances in which pilgrims succumbed to extreme cold and passed past bodies wrapped in white cloth
“Along the way home, I saw many pilgrims who died. Almost every few hundred meters, there was a body lying and covered with an ihram [white fabric] cloth,” Ahmed, a 44-year-old from Indonesia, told CNN.
“Whenever there is a water distribution from locals or specific groups, it is immediately overrun by the pilgrims,” he continued, noting that he had not seen any ambulances or medical personnel along the route.
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