JEDDAH, 20 November 2003 — At least four pilgrims and three others died and more than 50 people were injured in three separate road accidents over the past two days.
Three pilgrims died and 11 others were injured in Asfan, north of Makkah, when their bus overturned. They were on their way from Madinah to perform Umrah.
The pilgrims included women and children, Al-Watan Arabic daily reported, adding police were investigating the accident.
Six Saudi Red Crescent Society teams and four Civil Defense teams took part in the rescue operations.
Five seriously injured pilgrims were flown to hospital by helicopter, the paper said.
Meanwhile one pilgrim was killed and 40 others injured when a bus carrying Umrah pilgrims crashed into a cement truck on Sunday, according to Al-Madinah newspaper.
Fifteen of the injured were taken to hospital in Makkah with injuries ranging from light to critical. Two of the injured, Fuad Ibrahim and Khalaf Saud, told the newspaper that it was the bus that had crashed into the truck.
There were also reports that the bus driver was tired and had not slept for two days. One witness said the driver had tried to overtake the truck but lost control and crashed into it.
Separately, Al-Jazirah reported that three people died on the Makkah-Laith-Jizan Road when their cars crashed as a result of speeding on Monday. Civil Defense officers had a difficult job removing the bodies of the crash victims from their cars.
Also, a young Saudi died in Wadi Al-Dawasser on Monday while out joyriding with his friends, Al-Riyadh said. The youth, who was driving a Landcruiser, died while attempting an acrobatic display.
“The driver lost control of the vehicle and the young men inside were flung out when the vehicle overturned,” the Arabic daily said, adding that one of them died before reaching hospital.
