Wednesday, June 17, 2026
ADVT 
National

Over 65 Killed As Crane Falls On Mecca's Grand Mosque

Darpan News Desk IANS, 11 Sep, 2015 10:38 AM
    Over 65 people were killed after a crane collapsed on to the Grand Mosque in the Saudi Arabia's holy city of Makkah, which is preparing for the Annual Haj.
     
    At least 65 people have been killed and at least 30 injured, reported the BBC, citing the Saudi civil defence authority.
     
     
     
     
    It was raining heavily at the time. Few other details are available. Images from the scene showed part of a huge red crane had crashed through the roof of the mosque.Mecca is preparing for the annual Muslim Hajj pilgrimage.
     
    Construction work has been going on at the Grand Mosque for years to make it big enough to cope with the huge numbers of people who come each year.
     
     
    The incident occurred as hundreds of thousands of Muslims gather from all over the world for the annual hajj pilgrimage set to begin later this month, and Saudi authorities go to great lengths to be prepared for the millions of Muslims who converge on Makkah.
     
    The Grand Mosque is usually at its most crowded on Fridays, the Muslim weekly day of prayer.
     
     
     
     
    Last year, the kingdom reduced the numbers permitted to perform haj for safety reasons because of construction work to enlarge the Grand Mosque.

    MORE National ARTICLES

    B.C. Grand Chief Says Federal Government Officials Destroyed Legal Emails

    B.C. Grand Chief Says Federal Government Officials Destroyed Legal Emails
    VICTORIA — A federal government bureaucrat ordered the destruction of legal opinions over the potential of First Nations in British Columbia to reach land-claim agreements, the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs claims.

    B.C. Grand Chief Says Federal Government Officials Destroyed Legal Emails

    Pentagon Says Possible Live Anthrax Sent To Labs In Canada

    Pentagon Says Possible Live Anthrax Sent To Labs In Canada
    The U.S. Department of Defence says it has determined that possibly live anthrax was mistakenly sent to labs in Canada and Washington state, in addition to the numerous labs in the United States and abroad that were announced last week.

    Pentagon Says Possible Live Anthrax Sent To Labs In Canada

    Buzz In: Fairmont Chain Welcomes Pollinators To Bee Hotels Across Canada

    Buzz In: Fairmont Chain Welcomes Pollinators To Bee Hotels Across Canada
    TORONTO — One of Canada's largest hotel companies is buzzing with efforts to provide more homes for bees.

    Buzz In: Fairmont Chain Welcomes Pollinators To Bee Hotels Across Canada

    Candidates Suggest Federal Liberals Favouring Big-name Hopeful In Montreal Riding

    Candidates Suggest Federal Liberals Favouring Big-name Hopeful In Montreal Riding
    People vying for the federal Liberal nomination in one of the few remaining open ridings in Montreal are not-so-subtly suggesting the party is delaying the vote to favour a perceived star candidate who is a friend of Leader Justin Trudeau.

    Candidates Suggest Federal Liberals Favouring Big-name Hopeful In Montreal Riding

    Ex-Quebec Premier Jacques Parizeau, Who Nearly Split Quebec From Canada, Dead At 84

    Ex-Quebec Premier Jacques Parizeau, Who Nearly Split Quebec From Canada, Dead At 84
    MONTREAL — Jacques Parizeau, the blunt-talking sovereigntist premier whose strategic cunning came close to ripping Quebec out of Canada, has died. He was 84.

    Ex-Quebec Premier Jacques Parizeau, Who Nearly Split Quebec From Canada, Dead At 84

    Quebec Woman Drowns While Hiking In New York's Adirondacks

    Quebec Woman Drowns While Hiking In New York's Adirondacks
    KEENE, N.Y. — U.S. authorities say they've recovered the body of a Canadian woman who drowned after falling into a rain-swollen stream while hiking in the High Peaks Region of the Adirondacks.

    Quebec Woman Drowns While Hiking In New York's Adirondacks