Braving flu threat, Muslim faithful descend on Mecca

[Pathfinder]

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=789 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD colSpan=3 height=26></TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top width=5></TD><TD vAlign=top width=784 colSpan=2>Braving flu threat, Muslim faithful descend on Mecca

Posted: 23 November 2009 1114 hrs
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=260 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD align=right width=20></TD><TD align=right width=240>

</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top height=60></TD><TD class=update vAlign=top height=80><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD width=138 bgColor=#f6f6f6>Photos </TD><TD width=47 bgColor=#f6f6f6>1 of 1</TD><TD width=18 bgColor=#f6f6f6><INPUT id=btnPrev disabled onclick=Prev(); type=image height=15 width=18 src="http://www.channelnewsasia.com/images/butt_previous.gif" value="<< Previous"></TD><TD width=19 bgColor=#f6f6f6><INPUT id=bntPlay onclick=Play() type=image height=15 width=19 src="http://www.channelnewsasia.com/images/butt_stop.gif" value="Play - Stop"></TD><TD width=18 bgColor=#f6f6f6><INPUT id=btnNext disabled onclick=Next(); type=image height=15 width=18 src="http://www.channelnewsasia.com/images/butt_next.gif" value=" Next >> "></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

Muslim pilgrims at the Grand Mosque for evening prayers in the holy city of Mecca.
​

</TD></TR><TR><TD></TD><TD class=update></TD></TR><TR><TD></TD><TD></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia: Braving the swine flu pandemic, more than 2.5 million Muslim faithful are descending on the holy cities of Mecca and Medina this week for the hajj.​

Under heightened monitoring by some 20,000 medical staff and more than 100,000 security personnel, the world's largest annual pilgrimage will kick off on Wednesday in western Saudi Arabia.​

Four deaths from the A(H1N1) virus announced on Saturday - the first among pilgrims - served as a warning to the faithful who have mostly eschewed surgical masks and other preventive measures.​

But the number was less than had been feared by the Saudi authorities.​

Pilgrims from all over the world have poured into Saudi Arabia, by plane, bus and boat since October, for what for many is a once-in-a-lifetime experience.​

Among the other concerns, Saudi officials are hoping also that repeated deadly stampedes - the last in 2006 left 364 dead - are a thing of the past.​

Builders just completed a massive five-storey pedestrian walkway for the most crowded stage of the hajj - the stoning of the devil at the Jamarat in Mina valley - designed to avoid the panics of the past.​

The 950 metre long, 80 metre wide bridge cost US$1.2 billion.​

Swine flu has been a major concern since it reached pandemic level earlier this year.​

By Saturday, only 20 pilgrims had been diagnosed with the disease. Twelve had been treated and discharged, four died and four remained in hospital.​

Health ministry spokesman Dr. Khaled Marghlani said the four dead - three 75-year-olds and a teenage Nigerian girl - all had health problems ranging from chest infection to cancer that made them highly vulnerable.​

"They all had pre-existing conditions," Marghlani told AFP.​

After a May conference of international health experts, Saudis decided not to ban pilgrims from higher-risk groups - the elderly, children and the already ill.​

With the Hajj a duty for all able Muslims, Riyadh instead urged governments around the world to restrict the pilgrimage to healthy adults between 18 and 65.​

Doctors monitoring airport arrivals said there seemed to be fewer children and elderly this year, but not a sharp reduction.​

As a precaution, Saudi Arabia has provided additional doctors and hospital beds, and stockpiled 1.5 million units of the anti-viral drug Tamiflu to treat flu victims.​

"We have six health clinics in the Grand Mosque itself, working 24 hours," Dr Abdullah al-Rabeeah said.​

But Rabeeah said he hopes as many as 20 per cent of pilgrims will have been vaccinated against H1N1 before arriving.​

"We had the vaccination, but we are still worried a little bit," said Swaliha Khan just after arriving with her husband in Jeddah on Saturday from Ahmadabad, India.​

​

</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>​

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_world/view/1019937/1/.html

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Braving flu threat, Muslim faithful descend on Mecca

<CITE class=vcard>Islam's hajj: rain and fears of swine flu</CITE>
<CITE class=vcard></CITE>
<CITE class=vcard> <CITE class=caption>AP ? Pilgrims attending the hajj walk on flooded streets during heavy rains in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Wednesday, ?</CITE></CITE>
<CITE class=vcard></CITE>
<CITE class=vcard></CITE>
<CITE class=vcard>By HADEEL AL-SHALCHI, Associated Press Writer Hadeel Al-shalchi, Associated Press Writer </CITE>? <ABBR class=timedate title=2009-11-25T13:43:09-0800>Wed Nov 25, 4:43 pm ET</ABBR>
<!-- end .byline -->
JIDDAH, Saudi Arabia ? Muslim pilgrims circled Islam's holiest site Wednesday in their traditional white robes, with a few additions ? umbrellas and face masks ? as the opening of the annual hajj was complicated by torrential rains and fears of swine flu.

Saudi authorities have been planning ways for months to inhibit the spread of swine flu during the pilgrimage, which is seen as an incubator for the virus. The four-day event is one of the most crowded in the world, with more than 3 million people from every corner of the globe packed shoulder to shoulder in prayers and rites.

Now they are scrambling to deal with sudden, unexpected downpours that could worsen one of the gathering's perennial dangers: deadly stampedes.

In 2006, all it took was a dropped piece of luggage to trip up a crowd and cause a pileup that killed more than 360 people at one of the holy sites. The rains also could cause flash floods or mudslides in the desert mountains where most of the rites take place.

On Wednesday, the only fallout from the rains were epic traffic jams, flooded tents and washed out streets as the faithful tried to make their way to the Kaaba in Mecca. To kick off the hajj, Muslims circle seven times around the cube-shaped shrine draped in black cloth.

At times, crowds of men and women under umbrellas, some wearing surgical masks against the flu, circled in the courtyard of the mosque surrounding the shrine. But at other times during the day, the site was nearly empty, as were the surrounding streets, which would typically be jammed on the hajj's opening day.

Many travelers were struggling just to get to the site. Floods closed down part of the main road to Mecca from the Red Sea coastal city of Jiddah ? the entry point into the country for most of the faithful. As a result, cars were backed up as far as 20 miles, nearly half the highway's length.

Streets were flooded in Jiddah, waist high in some areas, and some pilgrims and journalists were trapped there. In Mecca, electricity was off and on throughout the day.

It often rains in Mecca and Jiddah during the winter months, but Wednesday's downpour was the heaviest in years during the hajj. Jiddah was swamped with 2.76 inches of rain, more than it would normally get in an entire year, according to Dale Mohler, senior meteorologist at the Web site, Accuweather.com.

Rains were expected through Friday, he said, warning of the possibility of flash floods and mudslides in the mountains surrounding Mecca.

"There's no vegetation on the slopes to soak up the rain," Mohler said.

The hajj is a religious duty for every able-bodied Muslim. Many around the world wait a lifetime for a chance to make the spiritual journey in the footsteps of the Prophet Muhammad and Abraham, who Muslims view as a forefather of Islam. For believers, it is an opportunity to cleanse one's sins before God.

It is also a logistical nightmare. Over four days, the population of a small city moves by car, bus and foot between Mecca and several holy sites in the desert nearby, each day performing a different rite all at the same time.

Civil Defense spokesman Maj. Abdullah al-Harthi said his organization has plans ready to deal with flooding, and had 300 buses to evacuate people if necessary.

Saudi Arabia's biggest worry for months ahead of the hajj was swine flu.

The Saudi government has been working with the United States' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to set up clinics and take precautions to stem any outbreak.

Signs at the airport and around the holy sites urge the faithful to cover their faces when they cough, wash their hands often and wear a mask.

The swine flu vaccine is available free at the airport. More than 100 clinics have been set up at holy sites, and large supplies of Tamiflu and other anti-flu medications are on hand.

Hassan El Bushra, an epidemiologist in the Cairo office of the World Health Organization, said "there is no evidence" that the rain would worsen the spread of the virus. It is carried in the air, by sneezes, coughs and touch ? not waterborne. The rain could even be beneficial if it means crowds are smaller, he said.

So far, four pilgrims have died from swine flu since arriving in Saudi Arabia, and 67 others have been diagnosed with the virus, Saudi Health Minister Abdullah al-Rabeeah told the English version of the Arab news network Al-Jazeera.

The crowds, seven people for every square meter, provide a perfect environment for swine flu, said Shahul Ebrahim, a consultant at the hajj from the U.S. CDC.

"Ideally you should be one meter away from someone to avoid catching the disease," he said.

But most visitors were too caught up in the exhilaration of the spiritual experience to worry. Nigerian pilgrim Omar Issa said he chose not to get a swine flu vaccination.

"I am not afraid of anything because God protects me. I came here for a religious reason, I am here to worship God," he said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091125/ap_on_he_me/ml_saudi_hajj

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Braving flu threat, Muslim faithful descend on Mecca

[SIZE=+1]Hajj pilgrims suffer floods and swine flu[/SIZE]
<SMALL>Taiwan Sun
Friday 27th November, 2009 </SMALL>​

Rain and flooding in Saudi Arabia has killed at least 48 people.

Flash floods have occured throughout the country and downpours have flooded streets in the cities.

People have been prompted to stay indoors as pilgrims make their way to the Muslim holy city of Mecca, where over two million people are expected to take part in the Muslim Hajj, the annual pilgrimage.

Four pilgrims have already died from swine flu since arriving in Saudi Arabia and over 70 others have been diagnosed with the virus.

http://story.taiwansun.com/index.php/ct/9/cid/b8de8e630faf3631/id/570343/cs/1/

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Braving flu threat, Muslim faithful descend on Mecca

Hajj devil stoning ritual biggest swine flu risk

Posted:<SCRIPT language=JavaScript>var wn_last_ed_date = getLEDate("Nov 28, 2009 9:48 AM EST"); document.write(wn_last_ed_date);</SCRIPT> Nov 28, 2009 08:48 AM CST



By HADEEL AL-SHALCHI
Associated Press Writer

MINA, Saudi Arabia (AP) - Millions of Muslim pilgrims, many wearing surgical masks, jostled together shoulder-to-shoulder furiously casting pebbles at stone walls representing the devil Saturday - the hajj ritual of highest concern to world health authorities watching for an outbreak of swine flu.

The annual Islamic pilgrimage draws 3 million visitors each year, making it the largest yearly gathering of people in the world and an ideal incubator for the H1N1 flu virus.

So far, only around 60 flu cases have been uncovered, but health officials warn it is likely spreading silently among pilgrims - and the true extent of the push that hajj has given to the virus won't be known until later, after the faithful have returned to their home countries around the world.

Saudi officials, along with American and international health experts, have geared up here to try to limit any outbreak. But they also are using the pilgrimage as a test case to build a database, watch for mutations and look for lessons on controlling the flu at other large gatherings like the 2010 soccer World Cup in South Africa.

The stoning of the devil ritual, performed on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, is when the crowds of pilgrims at the five-day hajj are at their height and contact between them is closest.

Under a hot sun Saturday, hundreds of thousands of sweaty bodies pressed against each other toward the stoning walls. The majority did not wear masks, and many sneezed, coughed and spat and looked visibly exhausted.

Other parts of the hajj - such as the circling of the Kaaba shrine in Mecca - see a lot of physical contact and close quarters, but perhaps not as much as the rites at Mina, in a desert valley outside Mecca. The epic crowds squeeze together along ramps and platforms that control traffic around the walls. They push past each other to hurl their pebbles at each wall, often shouting curses at Satan and rejecting his temptations.

"This is when the crowding is at its peak and this is where the spreading is likely to take place," said Hassan el-Bushra, an epidemiologist at the Cairo office of the World Health Organization. "All the hajjis (pilgrims) are in a very limited physical location."

Like many here, Mikail Ocasio, a 28-year-old pilgrim from Maryland, dismissed the swine flu worries.

"No disease was going to stop me from making my hajj," he said. "Allah made the call to me and made it available and nothing is going to stop me."

Mina has long been the most dangerous of hajj rituals because the same overwhelming crowds raise the risk of deadly crushes and trampling. In 2006, more than 360 pilgrims were killed when a piece of dropped luggage in a moving crowd caused a pile-up.

Since then, Saudi authorities expanded the giant ramp around the walls to five stories, spreading out the masses over different levels to prevent jams.

American and Saudi health officials circulated among the sprawling tent camp at Mina where the pilgrims live and gave the faithful cheek swabs for testing later.

Health authorities hung posters of correct hand washing, and hand sanitizer dispensers were placed on walls in the camps, near public bathrooms and at ritual sites. Pilgrims arriving at Saudi airports were also scanned using a thermal camera and were offered a free vaccine.

So far, four pilgrims have died from swine flu since arriving in Saudi Arabia, and 62 others have been diagnosed with the virus after reporting at the hundreds of clinics that have been set up at the holy sites in and around Mecca.

Health officials expressed relief at the low number. But since the flu's incubation period can be as long as a week, the number of cases from hajj won't be known until after pilgrims return home, starting Sunday. Then it will be up to their home countries to monitor new cases.

"We don't expect there to be a big number of cases in the next two days; it will be the week after hajj when you will see the escalation," said the WHO's el-Bushra.

Many pilgrims already infected may have such mild symptomsthey don't even know they are infected. Others simply don't seek treatment.

"A guesstimate of 30 percent of sick people will not come in for treatment because they are afraid of missing some of the rituals," said Shahul Ebrahim, who is part of a team from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control who are at the hajj helping Saudi health officials deal with swine flu.

Saudi Arabia this year recommended that those highly susceptible to H1N1 - the very young and the very old - stay away this year, and that may have had some impact in limiting cases.

Still, some pilgrims were seen carrying newborn babies and dragging infants behind them as they circled the Kaaba. Many elderly pilgrims feebly slumped in wheelchairs as relatives pushed them through the motions of the rites. For the old in particular, it's hard to pass on the hajj, since many want to do it at least once in their lifetimes.

World health authorities are concerned about the H1N1 virus because it is a new strain to which the vast majority of the world's people have no immunity. While it is mostly mild right now, the flu could mutate into a more dangerous form the more it circulates.

The same hajj petri dish that could help the disease spread gives epidemiologists a unique chance to study the virus.

Saudi and CDC experts are working to get cheek swabs from a representative sample of the population for later study. Some pilgrims were swabbed upon entry at the airport and at exit, said Ebrahim.

Authorities have also begun taking samples from illegal pilgrims who sneak in by land or sea without hajj visas and have set up sprawling makeshift camps on the rugged mountains of Mina.

The samples will be tested for H1N1 and any new strains of the swine flu that may have developed.

"This data will help with what to do in future mass gatherings, like the World Cup," Ebrahim said.

http://montanasnewsstation.com/Global/story.asp?S=11583744&nav=menu227_5

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Braving flu threat, Muslim faithful descend on Mecca

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD></TD></TR><TR><TD>Sunday 29 November 2009 (12 Dhul Hijjah 1430)

Pilgrims snub swine flu
Syed Faisal Ali | Arab News

</TD></TR><TR><TD></TD></TR><TR><TD>MINA: Braving the menace of the swine flu pandemic, thousands of pilgrims from all over the world, especially from countries hit by the H1N1 virus, spent the second day of their stay in the tent city reciting verses from the Holy Qur?an offering prayers to Almighty Allah.

Pilgrims were undeterred and firm in their resolve to seek Allah?s mercy and rejected any scare due to the H1N1 virus.

?We never thought even for a second while planning to embark on Haj about the disease. We were firm in our resolve. And if we have to contract this disease it might happen in Mexico, from where we have come and the country that is badly hit by the virus,? said Nabeel Waleed.

Most of the pilgrims were performing Haj rituals without wearing facemasks. Interestingly the security officials or those involved in Haj management as well as local pilgrims were the ones seen with masks. Pilgrims from Asian countries were rarely seen with masks. Even the places, as per the health authorities directives, where they should have worn masks like the crowded Jamrat Bridge and the Grand Mosque in Makkah, many pilgrims were not wearing the masks or taking any precautions.

?It?s He who gives you pain and misery in the form of disease and we have come to His house to answer His call, so the thought of any fear or scare does not cross our mind,? said Shakil Ahmad from India, who is performing Haj with his wife Shahana Afzal.

Many pilgrims are regularly drinking Zamzam water known for its divine medicinal properties to avoid contracting diseases, including H1N1.

?We are here to pray and meditate, and are not at all afraid of any disease for two reasons. First we are in Allah?s holy land and second the abundance of Zamzam. Zamzam has cured people for centuries,? said Yahya Al-Fareedi from Ethiopia.

Many of the pilgrims said they had not taken any vaccine shots for swine flu neither back home nor after arriving in Saudi Arabia.

?We have adequate amount of tablets and masks for pilgrims. The Indian government sent medicines and masks worth 1.3 million rupees for this year?s Haj, but hardly any pilgrims have asked for them,? said Mohamed Amin Ahmad, an Indian Haj coordinator in Makkah.

?The myth about swine flu has been exploded in Mina and I?m sure the disease is more hype than reality,? said Indian pilgrim Shah Alam.

http://www.arabnews.com/?page=1&sec...&m=11&y=2009&pix=kingdom.jpg&category=Kingdom

</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Braving flu threat, Muslim faithful descend on Mecca

Sunday, 29 November 2009 - 12 Thul-Hijjah 1430 H

Some Haj missions failed to educate pilgrims on swine flu, say officials

By Na?eem Tamim Al-Hakim

HOLY SITES ? Health officials have criticized some countries for failing to educate their pilgrims on how to deal with the swine flu pandemic during this year?s Haj.

Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeah, the Minister of Health, has confirmed that some Muslim countries did not follow advice on this issue.

This is also the view of Dr. Ziyad Memish, the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health for Preventive Medicine, who said that many Haj missions did not educate their pilgrims on ways to contain the disease.

He said some countries did not comply with the health ministry?s recommendations to hold awareness meetings before pilgrims traveled to Saudi Arabia.

Memish said that despite the negligence by some countries, the situation is stable and reassuring and there is no cause for concern.

He said this is corroborated by the fact that only 67 people were found to have the disease, from a total of about three million pilgrims from 180 countries.

However, the heads of some Haj missions from overseas countries, have rejected the accusations of negligence. They pointed out that they did hold awareness meetings with their pilgrims.

Ahmad Abdullah Ahmad, head of the Sudanese Haj mission, said Sudan held awareness meetings and practical courses two months ahead of the Haj.

Hamoud Al-Hattar, Head of the Yemeni Haj mission, said he also held awareness programs, but pointed out that many people had a choice over whether they complied or not. There was always going to be negligence by some people, he said.

Dr. Eisa Rawas, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Haj declined to comment on the issue and said this was the concern of the Ministry of Health.

Officials of some Tawafa establishments blamed some pilgrims for failing to follow the rules despite the efforts of the Haj missions and the Ministry of Health.

They said a considerable percentage of pilgrims did not implement the preventive measures because of their ignorance. ? Okaz/SG

http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentID=2009112955726