The civil defense authority has tweeted pictures of rescue workers at the scene. The governor of Mecca region, Prince Khaled al-Faisal, has now ordered an investigation into the incident. There was extreme weather in Mecca at the time of the crane’s collapse. The current structure covers more than 88 acres, but is currently being expanded in improvement works that were due to be completed for this the five-day hajj, which begins on 21 September. Reconstruction work to enlarge the Grand Mosque has continued for the past two years and was expected to be largely completed because the authorities intended to prevent crowd crushes. Last year, the kingdom reduced the numbers permitted to perform hajj for safety reasons. The annual Muslim pilgrimage is scheduled later this month.
