₦airaland Forum

Mina, a valley just outside of Mecca, is
one of the stops on the hajj, the annual
Islamic pilgrimage established by the
Prophet Mohammed. On Thursday
morning, at least 717 people died there
and another 805 were injured in a terrible
incident.
It began with a "sudden increase and
overlapping in the density of pilgrims" at
an intersection in Mina, which triggered a
stampede, Saudi authorities said (per to
the Wall Street Journal). The hajj attracts
enormous crowds — overall 2 million
visitors are expected this year — making
the crowded spaces potentially
dangerous.
This isn't the first deadly incident during
the hajj. It's not even the first this year:
Earlier in September, a construction crane
collapsed near Mecca's Grand Mosque,
killing more than 100 people . Previous
years have seen such incidents as well,
with one in 1990 killing about 1,400
people.
As the world's Muslim population grows,
along with the size of Muslim middle
classes that can more easily afford the
trip, the number of pilgrims on the hajj is
growing as well.
The disturbing recent history of hajj
disasters
The hajj is a religious pilgrimage to
Islamic holy sites in what is today Saudi
Arabia, in the area around the city of
Mecca. Meant to trace the original
founding moments of Islam and parts of
the life of the Prophet Mohammed, the
pilgrimage is a religious duty that all
Muslims are in theory required to do at
least once in their lives.
As the world's Muslim population has
grown — it is now about 1.6 billion —
more people are attending the hajj every
year. The Saudi government has spent
enormous amounts of resources on
accommodating the groups, but incidents
like Thursday's still sometimes occur.
Here's a list, compiled by journalist Brian
Whitaker, of large-scale accidents at the
hajj in the past few decades:
1987: More than 400 pilgrims died
as a result of demonstrations.
1990: 1,400 pilgrims killed during
a stampede in a pedestrian tunnel
linking Mecca with Mount Arafat.
The stampede is thought to have
been caused by the great heat
when a ventilation system in the
tunnel broke down.
1994: 270 pilgrims crushed to
death.
1997: 350 pilgrims killed when in
a fire started by a gas cooker
swept through the tents at Mina.
1998: 180 pilgrims crushed to
death.
2001: 35 pilgrims crushed to
death at Arafat.
2004: Some 250 pilgrims died in a
stampede during the "stoning of
the devil" ritual.
2006: At least 362 pilgrims died in
a stampede during the "stoning of
the devil" ritual; a hostel collapsed
in Mecca, killing at least 76
people.
Risks such as fires and stampedes are
amplified by the fact that the hajj is a
physically demanding journey, and a
number of the pilgrims who undergo it
are elderly or otherwise at increased risk
in case of an accident.
The high concentration of people makes
the spread of infectious disease a real
threat as well. The hajj "entails some of
the world’s most important public-health
and infection control problems," three
researchers write in the Lancet. "The
severe congestion of people means that
emerging infectious diseases have the
potential to quickly turn into epidemics."
Why the hajj is still dangerous
Over the past few decades, the numbers
of people going on the hajj has grown
rapidly, correlating with a growth in the
global Muslim population as well as
improving transportation infrastructure in
the region and globally.
As of 1950, University of Kentucky's Sven
Müller writes, fewer than 100,000 people
went on the hajj annually. By 1955, that
number had doubled. By 1970, half a
million pilgrims attended the event. The
hajj crossed the 1 million threshold in
1983, and now averages roughly 2 million
people per year.
But those are just official numbers. While
Saudi Arabia has imposed strict controls
on the number of people allowed to
attend the hajj each year, in practice it
can't completely control the influx of
pilgrims. Müller estimates that there are
about a million non-registered pilgrims
annually.
Such large numbers of people in these
spaces makes stampedes, like the one
Thursday morning, more likely — and
more deadly.

Pinopinoguy:
http://www.vox.com/2015/9/24/9392929/hajj-stampede

Thanks ops for this well detailed Hajj run down over the years likewise previous incidents experienced. Meanwhile, issues like this makes man to be more proactive and more strategic in the planning and execution of such mammoth gathering, eventhough what has been destine to happen will SURELY happen. May the Almighty grant the family of the deceased the fortitude to bear the fortune.....

If One time is ok in a lifetime, yet many still boast dat i goes to hajj every year.
If saudi are not really out for the fortunes behind this trip.
A serious committee has to be setup to checkmate this, can a richman/ a pulic figure buy Allah?