Six Ghanaian nationals have tragically lost their lives in Mecca due to a severe heat wave that swept through Saudi Arabia.
This recent development adds to the two deaths reported on June 13, bringing the total death toll to eight thus far.
Abdul Rahman Alhassan Gomba, spokesperson for the Hajj Board, confirmed this to Citi News.
He said the pilgrims were staying in Madina as part of their religious journey and faced extreme temperatures exceeding 41 degrees Celsius.
In response to the intense heat, Saudi authorities implemented a directive requiring all pilgrims to remain inside their tents from noon to 4 p.m. local time, the peak hours of the scorching temperatures.
The situation escalated following initial reports of fatalities among Georgian nationals, with subsequent confirmation that Ghanaians were also among those who succumbed to the heat wave.
According to Sky News, more than 1,000 deaths have now been reported during this year’s Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca.
“The temperature was so high—above 41 degrees Celsius,” A.R Gomda said, adding, “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.
“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.
He continued: “The forensic centre at the morgue, 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. Currently, we can say six people died during the heat wave, even though an autopsy report is not yet out regarding the subject.”
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