717 killed in Hajj stampede at Mina (Video)

Risingbd Desk: Authorities in Saudi Arabia say at least 717 people have been killed in a crush at Mina, outside the holy city of Mecca, where 2 million people are performing the annual hajj pilgrimage.

 

The Saudi civil defence directorate Tweeted saying that 805 people were injured in the incident.

The stampede occurred at Mina`s street number 204. Rescue operations are under way and an emergency has been declared in all nearby hospitals. At least 4,000 emergency personnel and 220 ambulances are taking part in the rescue operations, the service said.
 

The injured have been evacuated to four different hospitals in the Mina region, according to a civil defence spokesman.
Teams on the ground are leading pilgrims to safety away from the stampede by means of alternate routes, the civil defence service said.

Mina is where pilgrims carry out a symbolic stoning of the devil by throwing pebbles against three stone walls. It also houses more than 160,000 tents where pilgrims spend the night during the pilgrimage.

There have been stampedes during the hajj on at least six previous occasions, killing hundreds of pilgrims. In 1990, more than 1,400 died in a stampede inside a tunnel.

Less than a fortnight before Hajj, a massive construction crane crashed into Mecca`s Grand Mosque in stormy weather Friday, killing at least 107 people and injuring 238, Saudi authorities said at the time.

 

 

Sources: Agencies

risingbd/DHAKA/Sept 24, 2015/Augustin Sujan