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At least 87 people have died after a crane collapsed on the Grand Mosque in the Muslim holy city of Mecca, the Saudi Arabian government has said. More than 180 people were injured in the accident, the country's civil defence authority said yesterday.

Mecca is currently preparing for the annual Muslim Hajj pilgrimage. Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to arrive in the Saudi city from all over the world later this month. Reports suggested the crane fell on the east side of the mosque following high winds and rain. The Arabian peninsula has been hit by strong sand storms over the past week and the Strom had led to destruction of properties in different part of the region and some individuals had been rendered homeless. Government representatives claimed however that the situation had been put under control.

A video posted on YouTube, which could not be independently verified, appeared to record the moment the crane fell, with a loud crash heard in the background followed by panic and shouting. Those that were wounded in the accident had been conveyed to hospitals where they are being treated for divers injuries. Images circulating on Twitter appeared to show numerous bodies and blood on the floor of the mosque and its environs. The mosque is the largest in the world and the destination for millions of Muslims undertaking the Hajj pilgrimage every year. The authorities insisted that the tragedy will not prevent the Holy Pilgrimage from holding as scheduled. They insisted the issue would be under control before the stipulated date.

Saudi authorities began a major expansion of the site last year to increase the area of the mosque by 400,000 square metres (4.3 million square feet), to allow it to accommodate up to 2.2 million people at once. The tragedy occurred while the expansion works were on going. The authorities have however said the expansion works would continue and would also finish in recorded time.

It would be recalled that this is not the first time such tragedies would be occurring in Mecca during holy pilgrimages and it had occurred almost every year too. Yearly, there had been reports of casualties recorded on divers reasons. At times, it would be due to suffocation, considering the marmot crowd that gatherers. Casualties have also been recorded due to trampling and other issues.

More than three million people undertook the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca in 2012. Saudi authorities have taken steps in 2013 to limit the number of people involved. Large numbers of people have resulted in several tragedies over the years, including a stampede in 2006 that killed nearly 350 people.

At the heart of the Grand Mosque is the Kaaba, Islam's most sacred site, a black cube-shaped building which Muslims all over the world face when they pray. Islam requires that every Muslim capable of doing so performs a pilgrimage to the site at least once in their lifetime. Once at the mosque, pilgrims perform "tawaf" - walking seven times around the Kaaba in a counter-clockwise direction.