Mecca crane crash: Saudi King says investigation results will be made public

This year’s pilgrimage is expected to start around September 22, but Al Sudais told the wounded that, God willing, they would be spiritually rewarded for their intention to perform the hajj if they are physically unable to make the actual pilgrimage.

On Sunday, officials were able to confirm that Painem Dalio Abdullah, Saparini Baharuddin Abdullah, Nurhayati Rasad Usman, Ferry Mauludin Arifin and Adang Joppy Lili were also killed when the heavy-duty crane toppled over into the mosque’s courtyard.

At least 65 people were killed when a crane crashed in Mecca’s Grand Mosque on Friday, Saudi Arabia’s Civil Defence authority said, in an accident that came just weeks before Islam’s annual haj pilgrimage.

The number of deaths may increase, al-Amr said. The grave accident left 107 people dead and 230 others injured.

“On the commission’s part, we have advised the various states pilgrims’ board not to allow their pilgrims to go close to the Grand Mosque for now”, Mukhtar said.

The Hajj, a pillar of the Muslim religion which previous year drew about two million faithful worshippers, will take place despite Friday’s tragedy, Saudi authorities said as crowds returned to pray.

The engineer said the crane was the main one used on work to expand the tawaf, or circumambulation area around the Kaaba – a massive cubed structure at the centre of the mosque that is a focal point of worship.

A video on YouTube showed people screaming and rushing around right after a massive crash was heard and as fog engulfed the city.

Images posted by social media users showed police and onlookers attending to numerous bodies lying amid pools of blood on the mosque floors.

The accident occurred only about an hour before evening mahgrib prayers on the Muslim weekly day of prayer.

Abdel Aziz Naqoor, who said he worked at the mosque, said he saw the massive construction crane fall during the storm.

Prince Faisal ordered a probe as soon as the tragedy struck.

No details were immediately available on the nationalities of the victims.

Essam al-Ghalib, a Jeddah-based journalist, said the crane fell through the outer ring of the Grand Mosque and punctured through the roof sending down tons of cement and debris onto people either praying or walking through.