SAUDI WARNS OF HEATWAVE AFTER 2,700 EXHAUSTION CASES.

Saudi Arabia on Monday warned of a temperature spike in Mecca as Muslim pilgrims wrapped up the hajj in searing conditions, with more than a dozen heat-related deaths confirmed.

One of the world’s largest religious gatherings unfolded during the oven-like Saudi summer again this year and authorities recorded more than 2,700 cases of “heat exhaustion” on Sunday alone, the health ministry said.

On Monday temperatures were forecast to go as high as 49 degrees Celsius (120 degrees Fahrenheit) in Mecca, Islam’s holiest city where pilgrims were circling the Kaaba, and in nearby Mina, where others were throwing stones at three concrete walls — a ritual known as “stoning the devil” that is the last major step of the hajj.

Jordan’s foreign ministry said on Sunday that 14 Jordanian pilgrims had died “after suffering sunstroke due to the extreme heat wave”, and that 17 others were “missing. Iran reported the deaths of five pilgrims but did not specify the cause, while Senegal’s foreign ministry said that three others had died.

The Saudi health ministry announced 2,764 cases of heat exhaustion on Sunday due to sun exposure and “non-compliance with guidelines”, which include taking shelter from the sun during the hottest times of day in the afternoon.