Temperatures soared above 125 degrees Fahrenheit at one point this week—unusually high for mid-June—and more than 1,000 people died, including a number of Americans, a State Department spokesperson said. The situation was worsened by a large number of unpermitted pilgrims who didn’t have access to cooling facilities or the full range of available healthcare.
The death toll is the highest at the hajj since a stampede in 2015 killed more than 2,000 people. The fatalities are still being counted and are likely to rise, as hundreds of people are either missing or in the hospital with severe heat stroke. Hundreds of Egyptians were among the dead.
Pilgrims began to succumb to the heat last Saturday, the first day of the event, when worshipers make a trek of nearly 10 miles to climb Mount Arafat then stand outside for hours to pray before returning to Mecca.
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