Crane collapse in Saudi Arabia blamed on high winds

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — High winds were to blame for toppling a huge crane that smashed into Mecca’s Grand Mosque and killed at least 107 people ahead of the start of the annual hajj pilgrimage, the head of Saudi Arabia’s civil defense directorate said Saturday.

The disaster during a violent thunderstorm that roared through Islam’s holiest city Friday afternoon was the deadliest incident in years surrounding the hajj, which gets under way later this month.

The director general of civil defense, Suleiman bin Abdullah al-Amro, told satellite broadcaster Al-Arabiya that the unusually powerful winds that toppled the crane also tore down trees and signs as the storm whipped through the area.

An amateur video circulating online appeared to show a frantic scramble in the moments after the crane collapsed as scores of people pushed and jostled to get out.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry expressed his condolences and said the U.S. stands with Saudi Arabia and “all Muslims around the world in the aftermath of this dreadful incident at one of Islam’s holiest sites.”