Sixty-eight Indians were among more than 600 people to have died during this year’s Hajj pilgrimage amidst intense heat and high temperatures, media reports claimed citing sources.
According to these reports, natural causes or old age caused many casualties, while the intolerable weather conditions and heat claimed the lives of some others.
Six Indians were among the pilgrims to pass away on the final day of the Hajj while the remaining demises were reported over the weeks since the season began, Hindustan Times said in a report quoting sources who demanded anonymity.
Indonesia, Iran, Senegal, Tunisia, Jordan and Egypt are among the countries to have confirmed casualties among their Hajj pilgrims this year. Neither India nor Saudi Arabia have made an official statement on the matter during the time of compiling this report.
One list circulating online suggested at least 550 people died during the five-day Hajj. A medic who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss information not released publicly by the government said that the names listed appeared genuine. That medic and another official who also spoke on condition of anonymity said they believed at least 600 bodies were at the facility. The list offered no cause of death.
Each year, the Hajj draws hundreds of thousands of pilgrims from low-income nations, many of whom have had little, if any, pre-Hajj health care, an article in the April edition of the Journal of Infection and Public Health said. Communicable illnesses can spread among the gathered masses, many of whom saved their entire lives for their trips and can be elderly with preexisting health conditions, the paper added.
However, the number of dead this year suggests something caused the number of deaths to swell. Already, several countries have said some of their pilgrims died because of the heat that swept across the holy sites at Mecca, including Jordan and Tunisia.
One list circulating online suggested at least 550 people died during the five-day Hajj. A medic who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss information not released publicly by the government said that the names listed appeared genuine. That medic and another official who also spoke on condition of anonymity said they believed at least 600 bodies were at the facility. The list offered no cause of death.
Each year, the Hajj draws hundreds of thousands of pilgrims from low-income nations, many of whom have had little, if any, pre-Hajj health care, an article in the April edition of the Journal of Infection and Public Health said. Communicable illnesses can spread among the gathered masses, many of whom saved their entire lives for their trips and can be elderly with preexisting health conditions, the paper added.
However, the number of dead this year suggests something caused the number of deaths to swell. Already, several countries have said some of their pilgrims died because of the heat that swept across the holy sites at Mecca, including Jordan and Tunisia.
