The number of Nigerians who died in the recent Hajj stampede in Saudi Arabia has risen to 64 with 71 persons injured and 244 others still unaccounted for.
Mallam Uba Mana, Head of Public Relations of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria, NAHCON disclosed this to newsmen in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday. He said that NAHCON was doing everything possible to establish the fate of those still missing. He said ;
“This briefing is just to give you an update of the situation of things as regards those that died, injured and those still missing after the stampede . We have 64 Nigerians dead from the stampede, 71 injured and 244 still missing.
“Out of those that died, 48 are from States Pilgrims Welfare Board, 12 from tour operators. Those that are missing are from states pilgrims board and 18 from tour operators. We have set up various committees to track those missing and we are not limiting the search to Makkah,Mina or Medina but the whole of Saudi Arabia as helicopters were used to airlift victims to the nearest hospitals with several hospitals used.”
The NAHCON spokesman disclosed that the missing pilgrims are from Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Ekiti, FCT, Gombe, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger, Ondo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe and Zamfara states.
He added that while dead pilgrims are to be buried in Mecca at the expense of the Saudi government, families who want the remains of their loved ones flown to Nigeria can do so at their own expense.
His words;
“The commission will do all that is humanly possible to assist families of the dead get a befitting burial for their loved ones but if they intend to have the body sent home,I don’t think the Saudi authority will pick the bills.”
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