Mass gathering explained

Mass gatherings are events attended by a sufficient number of people to strain the planning and response resources of the host community, state/province, nation, or region where it is being held.^[1] Definitions of a mass gathering generally include the following:

• Planned (long term or spontaneously planned) event
• “a specified number of persons (at least >1000 persons).
• at a specific location, for a specific purpose (e.g. social function, public event, sporting event) for a defined period of time”.
• Requires Multi-Agency Coordination

Mass gatherings are usually sporting events (such as Olympic Games) or religious pilgrimages (such as Kumbh Mela or Arba'een Pilgrimage). They are highly visible ^[2] and in some cases, millions of people attend them.

Statistics

Here is some Statistics about the latest mass gatherings in the world:

2022:

July: Hajj in Mecca: 1 million ^[3]

September: Arba'een Pilgrimage in Karbala: 21 million ^[4]

2020-2021:

No more mass gathering due to COVID-19

2020:

January: Qasem Soleimani's funeral in Tehran: 7 million ^[5]

2019:

January: Kumbh Mela in Allahabad: 14 million ^[6]

February: Kumbh Mela in Allahabad: 50 million ^[7]

August: Hajj in Mecca: 2.5 million ^[8]

October: Arba'een Pilgrimage in Karbala: 18 million ^[9]

Mass Gathering Medicine is a new field of medicine that focuses on the health risks of mass gatherings.^[10] The World Health Organization through its "Department of Global Alert and Response" supports Member States hosting mass gatherings and regularly receives a large number of requests for technical support by countries organizing large mass gatherings.^{[11] [12]}

See also

• Flash mob
• List of largest peaceful gatherings
• Mass movement
• Protests

Notes and References

1. Ranse. Jamie. Hutton. Alison. December 2012. Minimum Data Set for Mass-Gathering Health Research and Evaluation: A Discussion Paper. Prehospital and Disaster Medicine. en. 27. 6. 543–550. 10.1017/s1049023x12001288. 23174040. 45404363 . 1049-023X.
2. https://www.who.int/activities/managing-health-risks-during-mass-gatherings Managing health risks during mass gatherings
3. https://mecca.net/hajj-information/ Hajj Information
4. https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20220917-21-million-shiites-mark-arbaeen-in-iraq-s-karbala 21 million Shiites mark Arbaeen in Iraq's Karbala
5. https://en.imna.ir/photo/404717/Kerman-pays-homage-to-Lieutenant-General-Qassem-Soleimani Kerman pays homage to Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani
6. https://www.indiatoday.in/mail-today/story/1-4-crore-people-take-dip-as-kumbh-mela-begins-1431763-2019-01-16 1.4 crore people take dip as Kumbh Mela begins
7. https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/india/mauni-amavasya-sangam-turns-into-biggest-confluence-of-human-faith-as-5-cr-devotees-take-dip-3482471.html Mauni Amavasya: Sangam turns into biggest confluence of human faith as 5 cr devotees take dip
8. https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/2022/7/7/photos-one-million-muslims-start-hajj-pilgrimage-in-mecca Photos: One million Muslims start Hajj pilgrimage in Mecca
9. https://en.irna.ir/news/83522737/Arbaeen-pilgrims-count-hits-18-million Arbaeen pilgrims count hits 18 million
10. Web site: Public Health Preparedness for Mass Gatherings . 2010-11-04 . 2018-02-06 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180206073502/https://sis.nlm.nih.gov/enviro/massgatherings.html#a0 . dead .
11. Web site: Mass Gatherings and Public Health. 2007. 2010-11-04.
12. Web site: Communicable disease alert and response for mass gatherings. 2010-11-04.