A powerful earthquake struck the High Atlas mountains of Morocco late on September 8, resulting in at least 296 fatalities and the collapse of numerous buildings.
Devastation from the earthquake in Marrakech, Morocco on September 9. (Photo: Reuters).
The Moroccan Ministry of Interior reported that this is a preliminary death toll, with 153 others injured. A local official indicated that most of the deaths occurred in remote mountainous areas.
Residents of Marrakech, the nearest large city to the epicenter and a UNESCO World Heritage site, reported that several buildings had collapsed. Local television broadcast images of a mosque’s minaret that had fallen, with debris covering crushed cars.
Citing anonymous local sources, the news channel Pan-Arab al-Arabiya reported that five people from one family had died.
Map showing the location of the earthquake. (Graphic: Reuters).
Montasir Itri, a resident of the mountain village of Asni near the epicenter, stated that most homes in the area were damaged. “Our neighbors are trapped under the rubble, and people are trying to rescue them with whatever means they have in the village,” he said.
Further west, near Taroudant, teacher Hamid Afkar reported that he had to run from his home. According to him, after the initial quake, there were continued aftershocks.
“The ground shook for about 20 seconds. Doors opened and closed on their own as I rushed down from the second floor,” he said.
The Moroccan Geophysical Center reported that the earthquake occurred in the Ighil area of the High Atlas mountains with a magnitude of 7.2 on the Richter scale. The United States Geological Survey reported the earthquake’s magnitude as 6.8, at a relatively shallow depth of 18.5 km.
Ighil, a mountainous area with small agricultural villages, is located about 70 km southwest of Marrakech. The earthquake struck just after 11 PM.
In Marrakech, several houses in the crowded old city collapsed. Residents are laboring to clear the rubble by hand while waiting for heavy machinery, according to local resident Id Waaziz Hassan.
Residents gather in Casablanca on September 9 after the strong earthquake in Morocco. (Photo: Reuters).
Marrakech resident Brahim Himmi reported seeing ambulances leaving the old town and many building facades damaged. He noted that people were very frightened and were staying outdoors in case of another quake.
Another woman, Dalila Fahem, mentioned that her home had developed several cracks and her belongings were damaged. “Fortunately, I hadn’t gone to bed yet,” she said.
According to witnesses reported by Reuters, residents in Rabat, about 350 km north of Ighil, and in the coastal town of Imsouane, approximately 180 km to the west, also evacuated their homes out of fear of stronger aftershocks.
