The third night sleeping under the open sky.
Many residents in affected areas have spent a third night sleeping outdoors following Friday night's powerful 6.8 magnitude earthquake. Aid workers are facing challenges in reaching the hardest-hit villages in the High Atlas Mountains, a rugged mountain range where many homes collapsed in the earthquake.
A woman weeps after the devastating earthquake in Morocco. Photo:
State television reported that the death toll had risen to 2,122 and 2,421 people were injured. The Moroccan government said it could accept aid offers from other countries and would work to coordinate them if necessary.
In Moulay Brahim, a village 40 km south of Marrakech, locals describe how they dug the dead from the rubble with their bare hands. On a hillside overlooking the village, people buried a 45-year-old woman who had died alongside her 18-year-old son, one woman sobbing as the body was lowered into the grave.
While retrieving belongings from his damaged home, Hussein Adnaie said he believed people were still buried in the rubble nearby. “They didn’t get the rescue they needed, so they died,” Adnaie said. “I saved my children, and I’m trying to get blankets for them and anything else they can wear.”
Yassin Noumghar, 36, complained about the lack of water, food, and electricity, and said he had received very little aid so far. "We've lost everything, even our house," Noumghar said. "We just want our government to help us."
With many houses built of mud bricks or wood, these structures are highly susceptible to collapse. This is the deadliest earthquake in Morocco since 1960, when an earthquake is estimated to have killed at least 12,000 people.
Waiting for aid
The Moroccan government said on Sunday it had set up a fund for those affected by the earthquake, and was also reinforcing search and rescue teams, providing drinking water and distributing food, tents and blankets. The World Health Organization said more than 300,000 people had been affected by the disaster.
A victim's body is recovered from the rubble. Photo: AP
People in earthquake-affected areas are living in makeshift tents and lacking essential supplies. Photo: Reuters
Rescue teams from Spain have been sent to Morocco to provide assistance. Photo: AP
Spain said 56 officers and four sniffer dogs had arrived in Morocco, while a second team of 30 people and four dogs was en route. The United Kingdom said it was deploying 60 search and rescue specialists and four dogs on Sunday, as well as a four-person medical team. Qatar also said its search and rescue team had departed for Morocco.
A U.S. official said a small team of disaster experts would be dispatched to Morocco on Sunday to assess the situation. France said it was ready to help and was awaiting a formal request from Morocco. Turkey, which was hit by an earthquake in February that killed more than 50,000 people, is also offering assistance.
Caroline Holt, global executive director of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), said: “The next two to three days will be crucial in searching for people trapped under the rubble.”
Holt added that the international aid system is awaiting an invitation from Morocco to provide assistance, noting that this is not unusual as the government has to assess the needs.
Hoang Anh (according to Reuters, AP)
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