DUBAI -- The death toll in a crane accident at the Grand Mosque in the Muslim holy city of Mecca rose to 87 on Friday, the head of Saudi Arabia's civil defence authority told Al Ikhbariya television.
He said 183 people had been injured.
The accident comes just weeks before Islam's annual hajj pilgrimage.
Pictures circulating on social media showed pilgrims in bloodied robes and masses of debris from a part of the crane that seemed to have crashed through a ceiling.
Saudi authorities go to great lengths to prepare for the millions of Muslim who converge on Mecca to perform the sacred pilgrimage. Last year, it reduced the numbers permitted to perform hajj for safety reasons because of construction work to enlarge the Grand Mosque.
The pilgrimage, one of the largest religious gatherings in the world, has been prone to disasters in the past, mainly from stampedes as pilgrims rushed to complete rituals and return home. Hundreds of pilgrims died in such a stampede in 2006.
Saudi authorities have since lavished vast sums to expand the main hajj sites and improve Mecca's transportation system, in an effort to prevent more disasters.
Security services often ring Islam's sacred city with checkpoints and other measures to prevent people arriving for the pilgrimage without authorization.
Those procedures, aimed at reducing crowd pressure which can lead to stampedes, fires and other hazards, have been intensified in recent years as security threats grow throughout the Middle East.
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He said 183 people had been injured.
Our Consulate in Jeddah is monitoring situation in Makkah following tragic accident. We have recd reports that 9 Indian pilgrims are injured
— Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) September 11, 2015Senior officers incldg our Consul General are on the ground in Makkah. Indian doctors r deployed in all Govt hosp & ascertaining more info.
— Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) September 11, 2015The accident comes just weeks before Islam's annual hajj pilgrimage.
Pictures circulating on social media showed pilgrims in bloodied robes and masses of debris from a part of the crane that seemed to have crashed through a ceiling.
Saudi authorities go to great lengths to prepare for the millions of Muslim who converge on Mecca to perform the sacred pilgrimage. Last year, it reduced the numbers permitted to perform hajj for safety reasons because of construction work to enlarge the Grand Mosque.
The pilgrimage, one of the largest religious gatherings in the world, has been prone to disasters in the past, mainly from stampedes as pilgrims rushed to complete rituals and return home. Hundreds of pilgrims died in such a stampede in 2006.
Saudi authorities have since lavished vast sums to expand the main hajj sites and improve Mecca's transportation system, in an effort to prevent more disasters.
Security services often ring Islam's sacred city with checkpoints and other measures to prevent people arriving for the pilgrimage without authorization.
Those procedures, aimed at reducing crowd pressure which can lead to stampedes, fires and other hazards, have been intensified in recent years as security threats grow throughout the Middle East.
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