Strong winds were blamed for knocking over a construction crane at one of Islam's holiest shrines in the Saudi city of Mecca, killing 107 worshippers and injuring 238 others, ahead of the start of the annual hajj pilgrimage later this month NBC News reported.
"Heavy rain and strong winds of unusually high speed led to the uprooting of trees, the fall of panels and the collapse of the crane," General Suleiman al-Amr, director general of the Civil Defense Authority, told the Saudi-owned channel, adding that the death toll may increase.
An investigation has been ordered into the disaster by Mecca's governor, Prince Khaled al-Faisal, according to Al Arabiya.
