Morocco quake kills over 1,300

MOULAY BRAHIM, MOROCCO: Morocco’s deadliest earthquake in decades has killed around 1,305 people, authorities said Saturday, as troops and emergency services scrambled to reach remote mountain villages where casualties are still feared trapped.

The 6.8-magnitude quake struck late Friday in a mountainous area, 72 kilometres southwest of tourist hotspot Marrakesh, the US Geological Survey reported.

With strong tremors also felt in the coastal cities of Rabat, Casablanca and Essaouira, the quake caused widespread damage and sent terrified residents and tourists scrambling to safety in the middle of the night.

“I was nearly asleep when I heard the doors and the shutters banging,” said Ghannou Najem, a Casablanca resident in her 80s who was visiting Marrakesh when the quake hit. “I went outside in a panic. I thought I was going to die alone.”

In the mountain village of Moulay Brahim near the quake’s epicentre, rescue teams searched for survivors in the rubble of collapsed houses while residents began digging graves for the dead on a nearby hill, AFP correspondents reported.

The army set up a field hospital in the village and deployed “significant human and logistical resources” to support the rescue operation, state news agency MAP reported. It was the strongest-ever quake to hit the North African kingdom, and one expert described it as the region’s “biggest in more than 120 years”.

“Where destructive earthquakes are rare, buildings are simply not constructed robustly enough... so many collapse, resulting in high casualties,” said Bill McGuire, professor emeritus at Britain’s University College London.

Updated interior ministry figures on Saturday showed the quake killed at least 1,037 people, the vast majority in Al-Haouz, the epicentre, and Taroudant provinces. Another 1,204 people were injured, including 721 in a critical condition, the ministry said.

Civil defence Colonel Hicham Choukri, who is heading relief operations, told state television the epicentre and strength of the earthquake have created “an exceptional emergency situation”.

Faisal Badour, an engineer, said he felt the quake three times in his building in Marrakesh. “There are families who are still sleeping outside because we were so scared of the force of this earthquake,” he said. “The screaming and crying was unbearable.”

Frenchman Michael Bizet, 43, who owns three traditional riad houses in Marrakesh’s old town, told AFP he was in bed when the quake struck.

“I thought my bed was going to fly away. I went out into the street half-naked and immediately went to see my riads. It was total chaos, a real catastrophe, madness,” he said. Footage on social media showed part of a minaret collapsed on Jemaa el-Fna square in the historic city.

An AFP correspondent saw hundreds of people flocking to the square to spend the night for fear of aftershocks, some with blankets while others slept on the ground.

Mimi Theobold, 25, a tourist from England, said she was with friends on a restaurant terrace when the tables began shaking and plates went flying.

Houda Outassaf, a local resident, said she was “still in shock” after feeling the earth shake beneath her feet -- and losing relatives. “I have at least 10 members of my family who died... I can hardly believe it, as I was with them no more than two days ago,” she said.

Hotelier Bernard Curi said he had been thrown out of his bed by the force of the shock. “The shaking was so strong I couldn´t get back up again right away.”

The interior ministry said authorities have “mobilised all the necessary resources to intervene and help the affected areas”.

The regional blood transfusion centre in Marrakesh called on residents to donate blood for those injured. The Royal Moroccan Football Federation announced that a Cup of African Nations qualifier against Liberia, due to have been played on Saturday in the coastal city of Agadir, had been postponed indefinitely.

“We heard screams at the time of the tremor,” a resident of Essaouira, 200 kilometres west of Marrakesh, told AFP. “Pieces of facades have fallen.”

The USGS PAGER system, which provides preliminary assessments on the impact of earthquakes, issued a “red alert” for economic losses, saying extensive damage is probable.

Foreign leaders expressed their condolences and many offered assistance, including Israel with which Morocco normalised relations in 2020.

Neighbour and regional rival Algeria announced it was suspending a two-year-old ban on all Moroccan flights through its airspace to enable aid deliveries and medical evacuations.

US President Joe Biden said he was “deeply saddened by the loss of life and devastation”.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping expressed “deep grief for the victims” and hope that “the Moroccan government and people will be able to overcome the impact of this disaster”.

Pope Francis expressed “his profound solidarity with those who are touched in the flesh and heart by this tragedy”.

French President Emmanuel Macron said he was “devastated” and said that “France stands ready to help with first aid”.

European Council President Charles Michel wrote on X, formerly Twitter, “that EU stands ready to support Morocco in these difficult moments”.

President of Pakistan Dr Arif Alvi, Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar and PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari Saturday expressed their grief over the loss of precious lives and damages caused to infrastructure after a strong earthquake hit central Morocco.

Spokesperson, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, said, “The people and Government of Pakistan stand in solidarity with the Kingdom of Morocco and express their heartfelt sympathies and condolences at the tragic loss of lives in yesterday’s earthquake. We have also conveyed our offer of assistance to Morocco. Our Embassy in Rabat has reached out to the Pakistani community to inquire about their safety. As per initial reports, all Pakistani nationals are safe. We will continue to monitor the situation to facilitate them in the wake of this tragedy.”

World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus described the quake as “heartbreaking”, adding: “We stand ready to support the immediate health needs.”

UN humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths said he was “deeply saddened by news of the quake, saying “our thoughts are with the thousands of families affected. We stand ready to support.”