IMGDAL, Morocco, Sept 11 (Reuters) – Rescuers raced against time on Monday to find survivors in the rubble more than 48 hours after the deadliest earthquake to hit Morocco in more than six decades, killing nearly 2,500 people in a disaster that devastated villages in the High Atlas mountains. .
Search teams from Spain, Britain and Qatar were joining efforts to find survivors of the 6.8 magnitude earthquake that struck Friday night, 72 kilometers (45 miles) southwest of Marrakesh.
Many survivors spent the third night outdoors, their homes destroyed or unsafe. The death toll rose to 2,497 and 2,476 people were injured, the state news agency reported Monday.
In Imgdal, a village about 75 kilometers south of Marrakech, women and children huddled early Wednesday morning under makeshift tents set up along the road and next to damaged buildings. Some gathered around a campfire. Further south, a car was crushed by rocks that had fallen from the cliff.
In the village of Tafeghaghte, Hamid ben Henna described how his eight-year-old son son died in the rubble after having gone to get a knife from the kitchen to cut a melon while the family was having dinner. The rest of the family survived.
Since much of the earthquake zone is in hard-to-reach areas, the full impact has not yet manifested itself. Authorities have not released any estimates on the number of people still missing.
Roads blocked or obstructed by fallen rocks have made access to the most affected places difficult.
On a road near the town of Adassil, not far from the epicenter, rescuer Ayman Koait was trying to clear rockfalls that were blocking traffic.
“There are worse roads further up that are still blocked and we are trying to open them as well,” he said as vans loaded with aid squeezed along a narrow, cleared track.
People were salvaging possessions from the ruins of their homes, and some described desperate scenes as they dug with their bare hands to find their relatives.
many structures fell apart easilyincluding the ubiquitous traditional houses of adobe, stone and rough wood, one of the picturesque features that have made the High Atlas a magnet for tourists for generations.
“It’s difficult to get people out alive because most of the walls and ceilings turned into earthen debris when they fell, burying whoever was inside without leaving any airspace,” said one military worker, who asked not to be identified because of the army rules.
The damage caused to Morocco’s cultural heritage has gradually emerged. buildings in Marrakesh The old city, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, was damaged. The earthquake also reportedly caused significant damage to the historically significant 12th century city. Tinmel Mosque in a remote mountainous area closer to the epicenter.
It was the deadliest earthquake in the North African country since 1960, when one tremor is estimated to have killed at least 12,000 people, and the most powerful since at least 1900, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
(1/8)A person carries furniture, after a deadly earthquake, in a village on the outskirts of Talaat N’Yaaqoub, Morocco, September 11, 2023. REUTERS/Hannah McKay Acquire license rights
HELP ARRIVES
Survivors struggling to find shelter and supplies have expressed criticism of what they have described as an initially slow response from the government.
Morocco has deployed the army and said it is reinforcing search and rescue teams, providing clean water and distributing food, tents and blankets.
Neither King Mohammed VI nor Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch have addressed the nation since the disaster.
In a televised statement on Sunday, government spokesman Mustapha Baytas said all possible efforts were being made on the ground.
He added that King Mohammed had ordered the prime minister to meet on Monday with a ministerial committee that is developing emergency plans, including the reconstruction of homes.
Morocco had accepted offers of help from Spain, Qatar, Britain and the United Arab Emirates.
State television said the government had assessed aid needs and considered the importance of coordinating relief efforts before accepting aid, and that it could accept offers of aid from other countries and would work to coordinate them if necessary.
Spain and Britain had sent search and rescue specialists with sniffer dogs, while Qatar said on Sunday its search and rescue team had left for Morocco.
The European Union said it was providing an initial €1 million ($1.07 million) to non-governmental aid organizations already in Morocco, and was in contact with Moroccan authorities to offer full civil protection assistance. the EU, should it need it.
Both France and Germany downplayed the importance of Morocco not immediately accepting their offers of help.
Germany He said on Monday that he saw no indication that Morocco’s decision was political, as he knew from his own experience with the deadly 2021 floods that coordination of aid was important to prevent rescuers from impeding each other.
France He said on Sunday that he was willing to help as long as Morocco made a formal request and that any controversy over the issue was “out of place.”
Paris and Rabat have had a difficult relationship in recent years, especially over the issue of Western Sahara, a disputed territory that Morocco wants France to recognize as Moroccan. Morocco has not had an ambassador in Paris since January.
(1 dollar = 0.9323 euros)
Additional reporting by Clauda Tanios in Dubai, John Irish and Nicolas Delame in Paris; written by Tom Perry and Estelle Shirbon; editing by Mark Heinrich
Our standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
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