570-odd Hajj pilgrims die in Mecca as temperature crosses 51°C: Report

Diplomats from various countries have reportedly said that about 577 pilgrims died in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, this year during the Hajj pilgrimage due to the extreme temperatures that almost touched 52 degrees Celsius.

The death toll includes about 323 Egyptians and 60 Jordanians, according to the news agency AFP, which quoted diplomats from those nations. Other countries that reported deaths of their citizens due to Hajj this year are Iran, Senegal, and Indonesia.

The diplomats said the total number of deaths reported at the hospital morgue in the Al-Muaisem neighbourhood, one of the biggest morgues in Mecca, was 550.

Climate change affecting pilgrimage

A Saudi study published last month said climate change is increasingly affecting the pilgrimage, with the temperatures in the location where the rituals are usually performed rising by 0.4 degrees Celsius every decade. The temperature at the Grand Mosque in Mecca on Monday (June 17) was 51.8 degrees Celsius as recorded by the Saudi national meteorology centre.

Due to the scorching heat, officials in Saudi Arabia have advised pilgrims to drink plenty of water, use umbrellas, and to take shelter from the sun during the hottest periods of the day.

Pilgrims cool themselves by pouring bottles of water over their heads and consuming cold drinks and ice cream offered by volunteers, according to reports by AFP.

However, these measures do not seem to be sufficient to protect themselves from the searing heat, also because many of the Hajj rituals involve being outdoors exposed to the sun for hours.

Victims include many unregistered pilgrims

What makes matters worse is that every year, tens of thousands of pilgrims perform the Hajj through irregular channels because they cannot afford the cost of the official Hajj visas. These pilgrims are unable to access the air-conditioned facilities provided by the Saudi administration along the pilgrimage route. One of the diplomats said the Egyptian death toll included a large number of these unregistered pilgrims.

“The pilgrims went without food, water, or air-conditioning for a long time. They died from the heat because they could not take shelter from the sun,” he said.

Some people said they saw motionless bodies lying on the roadside, with the ambulance services unable to cope with the sheer numbers at times.

Saudi authorities have reported treating more than 2,000 pilgrims for heat-related issues. They have not provided any information on the number of deaths.

1.8 million pilgrims this year

The Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam, and every Muslim who can afford it is expected to complete the pilgrimage at least once during their lifetime.

Statistics shared by Saudi authorities show that about 1.8 million pilgrims visited Mecca this year for the Hajj, including 1.6 million from abroad.