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.
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