Fourteen Jordanians have been reported dead during the annual Muslim hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, some of them due to heat stroke, while 17 others were reported missing, the Jordanian foreign ministry said in a statement on Sunday.
At least six of the fatalities were heat related, the ministry said on Saturday, with temperatures predicted to reach 47 °C (116 Fahrenheit) in Mecca on Monday.
It didn't specify on Sunday whether the higher death toll was also due to the heat.
The hajj, which will end on Wednesday, is one of the largest mass gatherings in the world, with more than 1.8 million pilgrims expected to take part this year, according to the Saudi General Authority for Statistics.
Stampedes, tent fires, heat and other factors have caused hundreds of deaths at the event over the past 30 years.
The Saudi health ministry issued an advisory on Thursday warning of soaring temperatures and advising pilgrims to stay hydrated and avoid being outdoors during the hottest hours of the day between 11am (0800 GMT) and 3pm.
The Jordanian foreign ministry was co-ordinating with Saudi authorities on procedures to bury or transport the bodies of the deceased according to their family's wishes, it said on Sunday.
In 2015, a deadly crush at the hajj near Mecca killed at least 2,070 people, according to a Reuters tally at the time.
Reuters
Fourteen Jordanians die during hajj in Saudi Arabia, some succumb to heat
Image: REUTERS/Mohammed Torokman
Fourteen Jordanians have been reported dead during the annual Muslim hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, some of them due to heat stroke, while 17 others were reported missing, the Jordanian foreign ministry said in a statement on Sunday.
At least six of the fatalities were heat related, the ministry said on Saturday, with temperatures predicted to reach 47 °C (116 Fahrenheit) in Mecca on Monday.
It didn't specify on Sunday whether the higher death toll was also due to the heat.
The hajj, which will end on Wednesday, is one of the largest mass gatherings in the world, with more than 1.8 million pilgrims expected to take part this year, according to the Saudi General Authority for Statistics.
Stampedes, tent fires, heat and other factors have caused hundreds of deaths at the event over the past 30 years.
The Saudi health ministry issued an advisory on Thursday warning of soaring temperatures and advising pilgrims to stay hydrated and avoid being outdoors during the hottest hours of the day between 11am (0800 GMT) and 3pm.
The Jordanian foreign ministry was co-ordinating with Saudi authorities on procedures to bury or transport the bodies of the deceased according to their family's wishes, it said on Sunday.
In 2015, a deadly crush at the hajj near Mecca killed at least 2,070 people, according to a Reuters tally at the time.
Reuters
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