Rabat: At least 632 people have been killed so far in Morocco after Friday night’s massive earthquake. The tremors were so intense that many buildings were damaged, from the historic city of Marrakesh to villages located on the Atlas Mountains. The country’s interior ministry said early Saturday that more than 600 people had died and hundreds of injured had been hospitalized due to the earthquake. The ministry said most of the damage occurred outside cities and towns. The head of the town of Talat N’Yaqub, Abderrahman et Daoud, told the Moroccan news site ‘2M’ that many houses in the towns of Al Houze region have partially or completely collapsed, power is out in some places and roads are blocked. were blocked.
Ait Daud said authorities were clearing roads in the province so that ambulances could pass and provide aid to the affected population. He said it would take time to assess the damage due to the extreme distance between the villages located on the hill. Moroccans have shared several videos on social media, showing buildings collapsing into rubble and dust everywhere. Parts of the famous red walls surrounding the historic city of Marrakesh in Morocco have been damaged. Marrakesh is included in the list of UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) World Heritage Sites.
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The initial magnitude of the earthquake was 6.8
The US Geological Survey (USGS) said the initial magnitude of the earthquake at 11:11 pm was 6.8 and aftershocks continued for several seconds. Morocco’s National Seismic Monitoring and Warning Network measured the earthquake at 7 on the Richter scale. The US agency reported an aftershock of a magnitude 4.9 earthquake 19 minutes later. The USGS said the epicenter was at a depth of 18 kilometers below the Earth’s surface, while the Moroccan agency said its epicenter was at a depth of eight kilometers. The epicenter of Friday’s earthquake was on top of the Atlas Mountains, about 70 kilometers south of Marrakesh. Earthquakes are relatively rare in North Africa.
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The most powerful earthquake in the region so far
Lahqan Mhani, head of the National Institute of Geophysics’ Seismic Monitoring and Warning Division, told ‘2M’ TV that the quake was “unprecedented”. He said, ‘Earthquakes of this magnitude do not usually occur in mountainous areas. This is the most powerful earthquake ever recorded in the region. In 1960, a magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck near the city of Agadir in Morocco, killing thousands. After this earthquake, building regulations were changed in Morocco, but many buildings, especially houses in villages, are not earthquake resistant. The earthquake was felt as far away as Portugal and Algeria, according to the Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere and Algeria’s Civil Protection Agency.
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Tags: Africa, Earthquake, Earthquake news
First published: September 09, 2023, 14:22 IST