Heat wave kills 17 pilgrims in Pak during Lal Shahbaz Urs

 At least seven more pilgrims died on Sunday during the annual Urs celebrations of Hazrat Lal Shahbaz Qalandar in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province due to scorching heat which has claimed 17 lives at the famous fourteenth century <g data-gr-id="27">sufi</g> shrine till now.

“Seven more people died today due to the hot weather and humidity in Sehwan,” Raza Kazim a senior official at the Edhi welfare trust said.

“Thousands of pilgrims have converged for the annual urs of Shahbaz Qalander and the hot weather is causing <g data-gr-id="20">lot</g> of problems. There have been many cases of people dying from suffocation,” Kazim 

said.

Ten pilgrims died yesterday of suffocation due to heat stroke and shortage of drinking water, rescue officials said.

The annual Urs celebrations in <g data-gr-id="23">small</g> town of Sehwan in Jamshoro district of Sindh province is attended by over half million devotees every year, who come from all parts of Pakistan.

The devotees had to face a severe heat wave today as <g data-gr-id="19">temperature</g> in Sehwan touched 44 degrees Celsius, Geo News reported.

The Urs festival is celebrated to pay homage to the famous Sufi saint -- Sayed Muhammad Usman <g data-gr-id="26">Marwandi</g> (1177?1274), also known as Lal Shahbaz Qalandar.

His 763rd Urs celebrations began this morning and will continue till Monday.