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Crowd Evacuation in Hajj Stoning Area: Planning through Modeling and Simulation

Author

Listed:
  • Heba Kurdi

    (Computer Science Department, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
    Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, MA 02139, USA)

  • Amal Alzuhair

    (Computer Science Department, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia)

  • Dana Alotaibi

    (Computer Science Department, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia)

  • Hesah Alsweed

    (Computer Science Department, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia)

  • Noor Almoqayyad

    (Computer Science Department, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia)

  • Razan Albaqami

    (Computer Science Department, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia)

  • Alhanoof Althnian

    (Information Technology Department, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia)

  • Najla Alnabhan

    (Computer Science Department, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia)

  • A. B. M. Alim Al Islam

    (Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, Dhaka 1000, Bangladesh)

Abstract

Pilgrimage is one of the largest mass gatherings, where millions of Muslims gather annually from all over the world to perform Hajj. The stoning ritual during Hajj has been historically vulnerable to serious disasters that often cause severe impacts ranging from injuries to death tolls. In efforts to minimize the number and extent of the disasters, the stoning area has been expanded recently. However, no research has been carried out to study the evacuation effectiveness of the current exit placements in the area, which lies at the heart of effective minimization of the number and extent of the disasters. Therefore, this paper presents an in-depth study on emergency evacuation planning for the extended stoning area. It presents a simulation model of the expanded stoning area with the current exit placement. In addition, we suggested and examined four different exit placements considering evacuation scenarios in case of no hazard as well as two realistic hazard scenarios covering fire and bomb hazards. The simulation studied three stoning phases, beginning of stoning, during the peak hour of stoning, and ending of stoning at three scales of population sizes. The performance was measured in the light of evacuation time, percentage of evacuees, and percentage of crowd at each exit. The experimental results revealed that the current exits are not optimally positioned, and evacuation can be significantly improved through introducing a few more exits, or even through changing positions of the current ones.

Suggested Citation

  • Heba Kurdi & Amal Alzuhair & Dana Alotaibi & Hesah Alsweed & Noor Almoqayyad & Razan Albaqami & Alhanoof Althnian & Najla Alnabhan & A. B. M. Alim Al Islam, 2022. "Crowd Evacuation in Hajj Stoning Area: Planning through Modeling and Simulation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-18, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:4:p:2278-:d:751570
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Kurdi, Heba A. & Al-Megren, Shiroq & Althunyan, Reham & Almulifi, Asma, 2018. "Effect of exit placement on evacuation plans," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 269(2), pages 749-759.
    2. Charnes, A. & Duffuaa, S. & Yafi, A., 1989. "A non-linear congestion network model for planning internal movement in the Hajj," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 40(3), pages 292-298, June.
    3. Ali M. Al-Shaery & Bilal Hejase & Abdessamad Tridane & Norah S. Farooqi & Hamad Al Jassmi, 2021. "Agent-Based Modeling of the Hajj Rituals with the Possible Spread of COVID-19," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-13, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Yicheng Yang & Jia Yu & Chenyu Wang & Jiahong Wen, 2022. "Risk Assessment of Crowd-Gathering in Urban Open Public Spaces Supported by Spatio-Temporal Big Data," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-25, May.

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