AMIZMIZ, Morocco — An aftershock shook Moroccans Sunday as they prayed for victims of the country’s strongest earthquake in more than a century and scrambled to rescue survivors as soldiers and workers brought water and supplies to desperate villages. mountain in ruins.
The disaster killed more than 2,000 people, a number that is expected to rise.
The United Nations estimated that 300,000 people were affected by Friday night’s 6.8 magnitude earthquake and some Moroccans complained on social media that the government was not allowing more help from abroad.
International aid teams were prepared to deploy, but waited for the Moroccan government to request their help.
“We know that it is very urgent to save people and dig under the remains of buildings,” said Arnaud Fraisse, founder of Rescuers Without Borders, who had a team stuck in Paris waiting for the green light. “There are people dying under the rubble and we can’t do anything to save them.”
Help was slow to reach Amizmiz, where a large section of the town of orange and red sandstone brick houses carved into the side of a mountain appeared to have disappeared.
“It’s a catastrophe,” said villager Salah Ancheu, 28. “We don’t know what the future is. “Aid remains insufficient.”
A building in a village near Marrakech, Morocco, destroyed by the earthquake on September 9, 2023. AP Photo/Mosa’ab Elshamy
Residents swept all debris from the main unpaved road leading into town and relief crews began arriving, but they called for more help.
“There are no ambulances, there are no police, at least for now,” Ancheu said.
Those who were left homeless – or feared more aftershocks – slept outdoors on Saturday, in the streets of the ancient city of Marrakech or under makeshift canopies in villages in the Atlas Mountains such as Moulay Brahim, one of the worst affected.
The worst destruction occurred in small rural communities that are difficult for rescuers to reach because roads winding through the mountainous terrain were strewn with fallen rocks.
The massive earthquake killed at least 2,000 people.AP PhotoMark Carlson
Those areas were shaken again on Sunday by a magnitude 3.9 aftershock, according to the United States Geological Survey.
It was not immediately clear whether it caused more damage or casualties, but it was likely strong enough to rattle nerves in areas where damage has left buildings unstable and residents feared aftershocks.
Friday’s earthquake toppled buildings that were not strong enough to withstand such a powerful tremor, trapping people in the rubble and sending others fleeing in terror.
A total of 2,012 people were confirmed dead and at least 2,059 more people were injured, 1,404 of them seriously, the Interior Ministry reported on Saturday.
Residents of the village of Moulay Brahim flee their destroyed homes. AP Photo/Mosa’ab Elshamy
“We felt a big shock, like it was doomsday,” said Ayoub Toudite, a resident of Moulay Brahim. “Ten seconds and everything disappeared.”
Flags were lowered across Morocco as King Mohammed VI ordered three days of national mourning starting Sunday.
The army mobilized specialized search and rescue teams, and the king ordered that water, food rations and shelter be provided to those who lost their homes.
He also called for mosques to hold prayers on Sunday for the victims, many of whom were buried on Saturday amid frantic rescue work nearby.
People comforting each other as they dig shelters for victims in the village of Ouargane, near Marrakech. AP Photo/Mosa’ab Elshamy
Offers of help have come from around the world and the UN said it had a team in Morocco coordinating how international partners can provide support.
Around 100 teams consisting of a total of 3,500 rescuers are registered with a UN platform and ready to deploy to Morocco when requested, Rescuers Without Borders said.
In a sign that Morocco may be prepared to accept more outside help, the Spanish military said it had sent an air force plane with an urban search and rescue team of 56 soldiers and four dogs to Marrakech. Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares said in a radio interview that the deployment was in response to a request for help from Moroccan authorities.
Another rescue team from Nice, France, was also on the way.
A car destroyed in the earthquake abandoned on a road near the village of Ijjoukak. AP Photo/Mosa’ab Elshamy
In France, home to many people with ties to Morocco, towns and cities have offered more than $2.1 million in aid, and popular artists are mobilizing to collect donations.
The epicenter of Friday’s earthquake was near the town of Ighil in Al Haouz province, about 44 miles south of Marrakesh. The region is known for its picturesque villages and valleys hidden in the High Atlas Mountains.
About 45 miles northeast of the epicenter, fallen walls exposed the insides of damaged homes and piles of debris blocked alleys.
In Moulay Brahim, a poor rural community of fewer than 3,000 people, many of the houses made of clay bricks and cinder blocks were destroyed or were no longer safe.
People inspecting damage in Jamaa el Fna square in Marrakech.AP PhotoMark Carlson
Devastation gripped every town along the steep, winding curves of the High Atlas, with houses folding in on themselves and people crying as children and helmeted police carried the dead through the streets.
”I was asleep when the earthquake occurred. I couldn’t escape because the roof fell on me. He was trapped. My neighbors saved me and cleared the rubble with their own hands,” said Fatna Bechar in Moulay Brahim. “Now I live with them in their house because mine was completely destroyed.”
Hamid Idsalah, a 72-year-old mountain guide, said he and many other survivors had little future to look forward to because they lacked the financial means to recover.
Rescuers backed by soldiers and police searched for victims in collapsed houses in the remote town of Adassil, near the epicenter.
Military vehicles brought bulldozers and other equipment to clear roads of rocks falling from the mountainsides, state news agency MAP reported.
A Spanish military emergency search and rescue unit boards a plane at a base in Zaragoza to assist in rescue efforts in Morocco. Spanish Ministry of Defense, via AP
Ambulances transported dozens of injured people from the village of Tikht, with 800 inhabitants, to the Mohammed VI University Hospital in Marrakech.
In Marrakech, where authorities were assessing the damage, large chunks of a crenellated roof were missing, and warped metal, crumbling concrete and dust were all that remained of a building cordoned off with police tape.
Tourists and residents lined up to donate desperately needed blood. Jalila Guerina said she rushed to help when she learned of the need because of her duty as a Moroccan citizen.
“I didn’t even think twice about it,” he told The Associated Press, “especially in the conditions where people are dying, especially right now when they need help, any help.”
At the market, stray cats climbed piles of stones and wooden bars, but shoppers were sparse at stalls set up under umbrellas by food and souvenir sellers.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn