MINA, 12 January 2006 — Some pilgrims have found an unusual way of getting to and from the holy sites, a method that is raising the ire of emergency personnel.
Namely, Hajis are hitching rides on the back of ambulances.
“We can’t stop every time we see them and push them away, yet we also can’t speed up to reach our location so that they don’t get hurt by falling down,” said ambulance driver Ahmad Al-Ghamdi.
The siren triggers the attention of freeloaders, who consider it a signal of a free, quick ride. Arab News observed pilgrims jumping onto the rear bumpers of ambulances, even placing their baggage on the rear shelves of the vehicles.
This conundrum of choosing between possibly injuring an unwelcome passenger or risking the lives others in need of urgent assistance has forced emergency workers to seek motorcycle escorts for their ambulances.
The motorbikes, driven by Red Crescent Society staffers, follow the vehicles shooing away potential freeloaders. Officials point out that this taps human resources that could be used elsewhere for crowd control, or helping pilgrims in need of something more than a quick lift to their destination.
“The problem is that most of the personnel are busy and it’s not always easy to find someone to drive behind the ambulance every time there’s an emergency,” said Ghamdi.
There are more than 300 ambulances serving Makkah and the holy sites this Haj season.
