Eight (8) Ghanaian nationals have died in Mecca due to a current heat wave in Saudi Arabia.
This was revealed by the spokesperson of the Hajj Board, Abdul Rahman Gomda, in an interview on Citi FM on Thursday.
Abdul Rahman attributed the deaths to the high temperatures that reached above 41 degrees Celsius in Medina where the pilgrims were lodging as part of their pilgrimage.
He stated that Saudi authorities confined Georgians and Ghanaians to camps in Saudi Arabia, unaware of potential deaths due to heat waves.
“They asked the authorities to confine us to our camps between noon and 4 p.m. Saudi time. Later, we heard that some Georgians lost their lives in town. At the time, we didn’t even know that some Ghanaians were also going to lose their lives under the conditions said to be related to the heat waves that swept across Saudi Arabia on the day,” Abdul Rahman said.
According to the spokesperson for the Hajj Board, it is possible the numbers could be higher considering Ghanaians who did not travel through the Hajj Board.
“I had the opportunity to speak with an official at the time word spread around the Ghanaian camp that 13 of our nationals had lost their lives. These people were persons who did not travel via the Hajj Board. These were people suspected of having travelled with a non-Hajj visa.
“The forensic centre at the mortuary, where the corpses are kept before being buried, had only managed to get six nationals from Ghana. When I asked him how they were doing it, they told me they were using fingerprints, and it was a laborious task.
“So, it will take days before the number of Ghanaians who died as a result of the heat wave will be established,” he remarked.
Earlier in June, two Ghanaians were reported dead in the same location, although officials have yet to conclude investigations into the deaths.
Reports by international media reveal that the excessive heat has till date claimed over 1,000 lives, with over half of the dead being unregistered pilgrims.
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