Hajj Death Toll Hits 36

Common cold has become the top killer infection among Nigerian pilgrims performing this year’s Hajj with total death toll now 36.

Dr Sabo Garba, the Head of the Nigerian Medical Team in Mecca, disclosed this to the Sultan of Sokoto and National Amirul Hajj, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Garba made the disclosure during the Sultan’s visit to the Misfallah clinics in Mecca on Tuesday.

He said common cold often forced to the clinics daily several hundreds of pilgrims, out of the 95,071 Nigerian pilgrims presently in Mecca.

Garba said the medical mission had done its best by treating the affected pilgrims who visited its three clinics in Mecca, Jeddah and Medina.

“So far, 13,636 patients have visited our clinics,” he said.

Garba said at least 36 pilgrims had died since the beginning of the Hajj operations out of the 95,071 Nigerian pilgrims that are participating in this year’s Hajj.

Of this figure, he said Sokoto state recorded five deaths, the highest among the country’s 36 states and the FCT.

He said Kano, Katsina and Kebbi had recorded four deaths each, Bauchi three, with Lagos, Zamfara, Ogun, Gombe and Nasarawa recording two deaths each.

“Yobe, Oyo, Ondo and Niger are among those states which also recorded one death each,” Garba said.

He said the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) equally lost one of its pilgrims’ assistants, while the Nigerian Army lost one of its officers on the pilgrimage.

Garba told the Sultan that the mission had no report of any case of pregnancy among the female pilgrims.

He said this was as a result of the strict screening of all females by their respective state pilgrim welfare agency’s medical teams.

The head of the medical team also commended the Federal Government through the National Amirul Hajj Team and NAHCON.

“The commendation is necessary owing to the provision of all necessary drugs and medical consumables for the treatment of the patients that visited our clinics,” he said.

Abubakar, while responding, commended the NAHCON staff for providing medical services to Nigerian pilgrims.

He urged them to redouble their efforts in the coming days, as pilgrims return to Nigeria,

NAN reports that 15,767 pilgrims have been transported back to Nigeria in 30 flights operated by various airlines in the last few days.