Sri Lankan pilgrim found missing after Mina stampede
 

BY MOHAMMED Rasooldeen in Riyadh

A Sri Lankan pilgrim was found missing following the Mina stampede where nearly 350 pilgrims, mostly elderly men and women, lost their lives while carrying out the stoning of the devil ritual on the last day of Haj on Thursday.

"Following the tragedy, we did a head count of all Sri Lankan pilgrims through the 86 Haj groups and found only one person missing from the groups after the incident," envoy A.M.J. Sadiq told the Daily News.

The envoy added that on Railways, Transport, Petroleum and Haj Affairs Minister A.H.M. Fowzie's instructions the mission launched a search for Sri Lankan casualties following the tragedy.

The Mission sent officials to the mortuary to check if the Sri Lankan pilgrim was among the dead. The Ambassador refused to give details of the missing person since the search was not completed. "We pray and hope that he comes out well from the hospitals where the injured pilgrims are warded," he said.

Fowzie said it was sad so many lost their lives despite precautions taken by the Saudi Government. "I am happy embassy officials together with volunteers are doing a good job to find the missing person."

Last week Sri Lankan pilgrim Sithy Refaya Hameed from Akurana died in Mecca. Two Sri Lankan women pilgrims have died during this season.

Interior Ministry spokesman Major General Mansour Al-Turki said 345 people were killed in Thursday's mishap. According to a spokesman for the Saudi Red Crescent, more than 1,000 were injured.

The tragedy struck at 1.30 p.m. at the east entrance to the Jamrat Bridge when a large group of pilgrims approaching the bridge to throw their final pebbles at the Jamat (the place where the three walls representing the devil are situated) encountered another large group of pilgrims who were essentially at a standstill in the area, sitting with their bags and bundles waiting for the sun to pass the Meridian.

The group closest to the bridge was unaware of oncoming pilgrims. Security Forces moved in quickly to isolate the area. Police and soldiers stood shoulder to shoulder, creating a human wall around the site.

The scene in Mina was of chaos Wednesday as pilgrims separated from their groups in the afternoon searching for their camps. Many pilgrims could be seen showing their ID cards and bracelets to passers-by in a desperate attempt to locate their tents.

Speaking from the accident site, Dr. Sajid Hassan, a dentist at the Ministry of Health Hospital, who is performing the pilgrimage along with his wife, said the stampede began when pilgrims were prevented from going ahead with the stoning ritual due to the surging crowd at the Jamrat Bridge.

He said that as the crowd was turned back, the Security Forces prevented the incoming pilgrims from moving forward, while electronic signboards flashed warning signs of the danger ahead.

"We stopped in our tracks seeing that the rush was in the opposite direction. However, pilgrims from behind were unaware of the situation and started pressing ahead despite the warning signals," he said.

Dr. Hassan said in the ensuing melee many who were trapped on the bridge fell down while trying to escape, while others were trampled in their attempt to rescue the fallen pilgrims.