Our Correspondents /
Death Toll has gone up to 107 in crane tragedy that took place at Muslims’ most revered mosque in Makkah Saudi Arabia. 2 Indians were killed. More than 230 people are injured some of them are in serious condition.
India’s Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said Indian consulate in Jeddah is monitoring situation in Mecca. He said so far, injuries of 15 Indian pilgrims have been reported.
The incident happened when a huge crane crashed into a part of the Grand Mosque that was filled with worshippers at the time. Head of Saudi Arabia’s civil defence said strong winds and heavy rains caused the collapse.
The incident occurs as thousands of Muslims gather from all over the world for the annual Haj pilgrimage set to begin later this month.
Meanwhile, Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari has deeply condoled the loss of a number of lives and injuries of Haj pilgrims.
Indian Consulate has opened help line numbers so the people can get information of their loved ones. The numbers are 00966125458000, 00966125496000.
Makkah: Large numbers of People turn out to donate blood at a hospital in Makkah for those injured in the Haram crane accident.
Eralier Indian Consul General B.S. Mubarak confirmed that nine Indians were among the injured.
He said the Saudi authorities quickly took control of the situation.
“They closed some entry points into the Grand Mosque, but many gates remained open,” he said. “I prayed Isha at the Grand Mosque and everything was normal.”
Mubarak, who has been camping in Makkah to look after Indian pilgrims for the past week, said pilgrims inside the mosque were busy in prayers. “There is no panic at all,” he said. He said a crane came crashing down just before Maghreb. “Part of it fell into the mataf area,” he said.
“When I went in there were shards of glass and pieces of concrete in one particular area.”
Mohammed Wakeel, a pilgrim from Parbhani, India, said the weather was very bad before Maghreb. “The winds were blowing at a ferocious speed and it felt like a cyclone was on the way. Minutes later, the clouds opened. There was heavy rain. It was frightening and then the streets of Makkah were filled with rainwater,” he said. “It all happened in a matter of minutes.”
People of Makkah throng hospitals to donate blood
A large number of people used the social media to encourage people to come forward to donate blood to save the injured Guests of Allah.
Abdul Wahab Shalbi, spokesman at Makkah Health Department, said that all the hospitals in Makkah were poised to receive as many injured pilgrims as possible.
“Those who sustained serious injuries have been rushed to the nearby Ajyad Hospital while those whose condition were relatively stable were taken to other hospitals. We have made available of 2,000 units of blood in addition to supplying 340 additional units to the hospitals,” he added.