Heatwave horror: Over 550 pilgrims die during Hajj, majority Egyptians

Diplomats on Tuesday reported that a minimum of 550 pilgrims died during this year’s hajj, highlighting the challenging conditions of the pilgrimage, exacerbated by high temperatures. Two Arab diplomats overseeing their nations’ responses told AFP that at least 323 of the deceased were Egyptians, with the majority succumbing to heat-related illnesses.

“All of them (the Egyptians) died because of heat” except for one who sustained fatal injuries during a minor crowd crush, one of the diplomats said, adding the total figure came from the hospital morgue in the Al-Muaisem neighbourhood of Mecca.

Diplomats reported that the number of Jordanian fatalities had risen to at least 60, an increase from the earlier official count of 41 provided by Amman on Tuesday.

According to an AFP count, the latest deaths have pushed the overall reported toll from multiple countries to 577.

They added that the morgue at Al-Muaisem in Mecca, one of the largest in the area, had a total of 550 bodies.

The hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam and all Muslims with the means must complete it at least once.The pilgrimage is increasingly affected by climate change, according to a Saudi study published last month that said temperatures in the area where rituals are performed were rising 0.4 degrees Celsius (0.72 degrees Fahrenheit) each decade.Temperatures hit 51.8 degrees Celsius (125 Fahrenheit) at the Grand Mosque in Mecca on Monday, the Saudi national meteorology centre said.

Heat Shocks

Earlier on Tuesday, Egypt’s foreign ministry said Cairo was collaborating with Saudi authorities on search operations for Egyptians who had gone missing during the hajj.

While a ministry statement said “a certain number of deaths” had occurred, it did not specify whether Egyptians were among them.

Saudi authorities have reported treating more than 2,000 pilgrims suffering from heat stress but have not updated that figure since Sunday and have not provided information on fatalities.

At least 240 pilgrims were reported dead by various countries last year, most of them Indonesians.

Many hajj rituals, including the prayers on Mount Arafat which took place on Saturday, involve being outdoors for hours in the daytime.

Around 1.8 million pilgrims took part in the hajj this year, 1.6 million of them from abroad, according to Saudi authorities.

With inputs from AFP