Factors leading to the collapse There were strong
sand storms in the region over the preceding week. The Saudi Civil Defence Authority said in a statement that an hour before the disaster, Mecca was experiencing medium to heavy
rain. There were also reports of winds of more than . However, the exact cause of the crane collapse was not confirmed. Crawler crane LR 11350, manufactured by the German-based
Liebherr Group involved in the incident was operated by the
Saudi Binladin Group, who are the main organization managing the expansion of the
Great Mosque and also responsible for a large amount of major building contracts in
Mecca and around Saudi Arabia. A report by Liebherr later stated that the boom of the crane was not sufficiently secured by Binladin to sustain the high winds on the day of the collapse. The
Saudi Gazette reported that
Khalid bin Faisal,
Emir (Governor) of Mecca, had ordered the Binladin Group to relocate cranes from pedestrian areas and to deploy safeguards to prevent pilgrims entering the construction zone, eleven days before the collapse.
Investigation Following the collapse, the governor of Mecca, Prince
Khalid bin Faisal, ordered an investigation into the incident.
Search and rescue teams, along with
medical workers from the
Saudi Red Crescent Authority, were sent to the site. After visiting the site two days later,
King Salman vowed that the collapse will be investigated and the results of the investigation will be made public. Pictures and video circulating on social media showed many dead and wounded amidst severe damage to the building. An engineer for the Saudi Binladin Group said that the crane was erected in "an extremely professional way", and the accident was an "
act of God". The Liebherr Group responded to the collapse by sending local engineers and engineers from their crane manufacturing plant in
Ehingen,
Germany to help in the investigation of the collapse and to assist on site. Liebherr Group experts who participated in the investigation of the collapse found no structural flaws in the crane. Their report stated that the crane's 190-meter (620 ft) long boom was not sufficiently secured by its operators so as to withstand the high winds present on the day of the collapse and that use of that crane in those winds was well outside the manufacturer's recommended operating parameters. To prevent
crushes and accommodate more pilgrims each year during the Hajj season, Saudi authorities undertook a major construction project to expand the mosque compound in recent years. At the time of the incident the Saudi authorities were preparing for the hundreds of thousands of people expected to arrive in the city for the Hajj due to begin on 22 September 2015. King Salman also decreed that these compensation payments will not prevent private legal claims by the injured and families of the deceased.
Trial In August 2016,
Saudi Gazette reported the trial of 14 individuals, with
Okaz adding that prosecutors did not file charges against 42 others who were under investigation, including 16 members of the
Bin Laden family, according to
Deutsche Welle. A mere 13 days after the collapse, on 24 September 2015, during one of the busiest days of the
Hajj pilgrimage, a
stampede at Mina in the outskirts of Mecca killed more than 2,000 other pilgrims, injuring an equal number. More than 400 others were deemed
missing. ==Reactions==