‘IT WAS REALLY, REALLY TERRIBLE’
Crowds of pilgrims collide near holy site; more than 700 killed in ensuing stampede
MINA, SAUDI ARABIA— Two giant waves of Muslim pilgrims collided at an intersection Thursday near a holy site in Saudi Arabia, and more than 700 people were crushed and trampled to death in the worst disaster at the hajj in a quartercentury.
“People were climbing over one another just to breathe,” said Abdullah Lotfy of Egypt. “It was like a wave. You go forward and suddenly you go back.”
The hajj, which drew 2 million people from more than 180 countries this year, is a huge logistical challenge for Saudi Arabia. The kingdom has spent billions of dollars to accommodate the growing number of pilgrims and maintain safety and security at Islam’s holy cities of Mecca and Medina for the annual event.
Saudi authorities are investigating, said Interior Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Mansour al-Turki, adding that initial reports showed two crowds coming from different directions converged at an intersection in Mina, on the outskirts of Mecca, when the pushing and shoving started.
“You can’t count how many bodies there were. They were stacked high.” MOHAMMED AWAD A SUDANESE PILGRIM WHO SPENT 30 MINUTES AMID THE CRUSH OF BODIES BEFORE HE REACHED SAFETY BY CLIMBING OVER A GATE
“Unfortunately, these incidents happen in a moment,” al-Turki said at a news conference.
But four survivors questioned how officials managing the flow of people could allow two big crowds going in different directions to intersect on two streets packed with pilgrims. “What happened was more than they were ready for,” Lotfy, 44, told The Associated Press.
As of late Thursday, the Saudi civil defence directorate said the death toll was 719, but that probably would rise as bodies continued to be counted and sent to the morgue. At least 863 people were injured, the directorate said.
An Associated Press journalist saw bodies still on the ground more than 10 hours after the crush and ensuing stampede in Mina, a large valley containing 160,000 tents for accommodations about five kilometres from Mecca. Sudanese pilgrim Mohammed Awad, 36, and his 56-year-old father were separated when people began pushing and shoving.
Awad said he tried to get out of the crush of bodies for about 30 minutes and eventually climbed over a gate with others. It took him an hour before he could look for his father, who was under at least 10 bodies — but still alive.
“You can’t count how many bodies there were. They were stacked high,” Awad said.
Amateur video on social media showed scores of bodies — many still dressed in the simple terry cloth garments worn during hajj — lying amid crushed wheelchairs and water bottles on a sun-baked street.
Helicopters circled Mina throughout the day, ferrying the injured to hospitals, while military police blocked the streets where the deaths took place.
Saudi Arabia takes great pride in its role as the caretaker of Islam’s holiest sites and host to millions of Muslims who must perform the hajj at least once in their lives. Signs posted around Mecca tell pilgrims that Sau- di Arabia is honoured to serve them, and the Saudi king takes the title of “Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques” in reference to the sites in Mecca and Medina.
About 100,000 security forces were deployed to manage the crowds and provide security for this year’s hajj, with 5,000 CCTV cameras throughout Mecca and Medina.
Over the years, the Saudi government has expanded Mecca’s Grand Mosque, which houses Islam’s most sacred site, the cube-shaped Kaaba. The government also uses sophisticated face-counting technology installed at a multistorey structure in Mina known as the Jamarat bridge, near where the tragedy occurred.
It was the second major accident during this year’s hajj season. On Sept. 11, a construction crane crashed down onto the Grand Mosque, killing 111 people and injuring more than 390. Authorities said high winds from a powerful storm caused the collapse and faulted the construction giant Saudi Binladin Group, which oversees construction at the mosque, for not following operating procedures. The tragedy came as Muslims around the world marked the start of Eid al-Adha, a traditionally festive time in which livestock is slaughtered and its meat distributed to the poor. The mood in Mina was sombre, however, and many were stunned by the tragedy instead of jubilant at completing the pilgrimage.
A visibly shaken Ismail Hamba, 58, of Nigeria, said he was on his way to cast stones when he suddenly became dizzy and fell down.
“By the special grace of God . . . a young man rescued me,” he said at a small clinic at the site of the accident, adding that he doesn’t know how he survived.
“It was terrible. It was really, really terrible,” said Hamba, who was making his second hajj.