By Ken Afor
More than 1037 persons have reportedly died after a 7.2 magnitude earthquake tore Morocco’s Atlas mountain apart in the late hours of Friday.
Hundreds of residents suffered multiple degrees of injuries after buildings were destroyed as a result of Friday’s night devastation.
Reports say the size of the earthquake would be the deadliest in more than six decades.
According to the Interior Ministry in an updated casualty toll, 820 lives have been lost and 672 people injured as most of the deaths were in the mountain areas hard to reach.
The earthquake brought fear to residents in Marrakech, one of Morocco’s big city close to the epicenter as they spent the night in the open.
A major building in the old city badly affected by the earthquake is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Also, a mosque in Jemaa al-Fna Square, the heart of Marrakech’s old city was affected.
“Everything is by God’s will, but we sustained great harm,” said Miloud Skrout, a resident, quoted by Reuters.
“I still can’t sleep in the house because of the shock and also because the old town is made up of old houses,” said Jaouhari Mohamed, another resident of Marrakech old city.
“If one falls, it will cause others to collapse,” he said.
An Australian tourist who gave her name as Tri said the room started shaking.
“We just grabbed some clothes and our bags and we raced out,” an Australian tourist said as the tremor struck.
Giving details of the earthquake, the Interior Ministry in a statement on television said the provinces of Al Haouz, Ouarzazate, Marrakech, Azilal, Chichaoua and Taroudant were hit.
An eyewitness, Montasir Itri, a resident of the mountain village, Asni near the epicentre, said, “Our neighbours are under the rubble and people are working hard to rescue them using available means in the village.”
