At least 10 people have been killed by flooding in Jeddah and more deaths are feared after heavy rains forced the closure of a motorway to Makkah.
"I confirm that it's 10 bodies but, I can't say anything more for now," a civil defence official told AFP. One person said he had seen several bodies and a bus that overturned in the storm.
The annual haj pilgrimage began with delays for thousands of Muslims stuck in Jeddah on Wednesday, leaving pilgrims stranded.
"We're stuck because of the water and rain. God willing, everything will be okay," said Hakan, a Turkish pilgrim from Istanbul as he waited for a bus to Makkah.
Some 1.6 million pilgrims have come to Saudi Arabia for the haj. Officials appealed to the stranded pilgrims to stay in Jeddah until the motorway reopens.In central Makkah, pilgrims with umbrellas completed Tawaf, walking the ritual path around the Kaaba seven times.
Some worried they would be unable to spend the night in a tent camp in a valley in Mina.
"We are staying in tents for now. Heavy rain turned red-carpeted corridors into streams of water with empty cans of soft drinks floating," said Zohra Nasef, from Morocco and on her second haj.
Authorities have improved facilities to ease the flow of pilgrims, particularly around the area where they throw stones at pillars symbolising the rejection of the devil's temptation. Officials are also trying to prevent a spread of the H1N1 virus during the crowded ritual. |