Weather of Arabia - This year's Hajj season witnessed the participation of more than 1.8 million pilgrims, including many elderly people, with the abolition of the maximum age for participants.
More than 8,000 people have suffered from heat exhaustion since the beginning of the Hajj, including 1,721 people who were injured today, Thursday, after temperatures reached 48 degrees Celsius, according to the Saudi Ministry of Health.
The Ministry of Health stated that heat stress centers in all hospitals in Makkah Al-Mukarramah and the holy sites are witnessing a steady increase in the number of heat exhaustion and heatstroke injuries.
The number of heat exhaustion injuries since the beginning of the day has reached (1721), indicating that this season is witnessing a significant rise in temperatures.
Yesterday, the Ministry stated that its staff dealt with more than 6,500 cases of heat exhaustion among pilgrims, bringing the total number of heat exhaustion injuries to more than 8,000 people, and this number may be much higher, as not all the injured go to the many hospitals, centers and medical teams that Saudi Arabia has deployed.
The Saudi Ministry of Health did not provide a death toll, but the number of deaths amounted to at least 30, according to figures announced by several countries without indicating the cause of these deaths.
Iran announced the death of the 114-year-old largest pilgrim from a heart attack, according to the semi-official Fars Agency, which reported 10 deaths among Iranian pilgrims.
And 8 Algerians and 4 Moroccans died, according to what officials in the two countries said, and the Cairo 24 website, which is close to the Egyptian authorities, indicated the death of 8 Egyptian pilgrims.
The ministry recommended pilgrims to stay away from standing for long periods of time in the sun, always use an umbrella, and drink plenty of water, warning repeatedly against exposure to sunstrokes.
This week, many in the Grand Mosque were seen sheltering themselves with umbrellas, prayer mats and cardboard, while women covered their heads with headscarves.
And throughout the areas where religious rituals are held, volunteers and security men spray water on the faces of the pilgrims, who appear very tired from the high heat.
Around Mina, pilgrims, especially the elderly, were seen trying to stay in the shade as much as possible, and some even took shelter from the sun under parked trucks.
The Saudi authorities prepared for that, and deployed medical teams comprising 32,000 paramedics and 190 ambulances in the Mina area alone.
And the Kingdom prohibits working outdoors from 12 noon until 3 pm, starting from June 15, for a period of three months.
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