The number of casualties has risen to over 2000.

A powerful 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck Morocco's High Atlas Mountains on the evening of September 8th, destroying hundreds of homes and causing thousands of casualties.

King Mohammed VI of Morocco ordered the armed forces to mobilize air and land resources, specialized search and rescue teams, and immediately set up a field hospital to treat the victims. Rescue workers are still digging through the rubble searching for survivors.

Witnesses from across Morocco reported that anxiety quickly turned into chaos as walls began to shake and objects started falling to the ground.

In Amizmiz, a town about 30 miles southwest of Marrakesh, near the epicenter, Yasmina Bennani was preparing to go to bed when she heard a loud noise.

The walls shook and cracked, vases and lamps shattered, and pieces of ceiling fell to the floor.

“I felt like I was being terrorized. I ran out of the room and screamed, telling my mother to get out of the house. It didn’t last long, but it felt like years,” Bennani said.

World - Earthquake in Morocco: Death toll rises to over 2000

As rescue workers scoured the rubble, they were heartbroken to discover that many people had not survived.

“My husband and my four children are all gone. I’ve lost everything. I’m all alone,” a woman told Moroccan state television.

“When I felt the ground shaking beneath my feet and the house started to tilt, I quickly pulled my children out. But my neighbors weren't so lucky. That family had no survivors. They found the bodies of the father and son, and now they're searching for the mother and daughter,” another man shared.

Abderrahim Ait Daoud, head of the town of Talat N'Yaaqoub, said authorities are working to clear roads in Al Haouz province to allow ambulances and aid to reach affected residents, but the mountain villages are quite far apart, so it will take time to assess the extent of the damage.

World - Earthquake in Morocco: Death toll rises to over 2000 (Figure 2). — Residents flee their homes in Moulay Brahim village, al-Haouz province, Morocco, after an earthquake struck on the night of September 8. Photo: WSJ

World - Earthquake in Morocco: Death toll rises to over 2000 (Figure 3). — The earthquake severely damaged a hotel in Moulay Brahim. Photo: WSJ

World - Earthquake in Morocco: Death toll rises to over 2000 (Figure 4). — People gather in a square in the city of Marrakesh after the earthquake. Photo: NY Times

The Moroccan military has deployed aircraft, helicopters, and drones, as well as emergency services, to provide relief to the affected areas, but roads leading to the mountainous region around the epicenter are congested and blocked by rockslides, slowing rescue efforts.

World - Earthquake in Morocco: Death toll rises to over 2000 (Figure 5). — Rescue workers search for survivors in a collapsed house in Moulay Brahim, Morocco, on September 9. Photo: The Guardian

This was the biggest earthquake to hit Morocco in 120 years, destroying many buildings made of stone and brick, which were not designed to withstand seismic activity.

According to Professor Bill McGuire at University College London, in places where earthquakes rarely occur, buildings are not constructed strong enough to withstand strong tremors, leading to high casualties.

The Moroccan Interior Ministry said at least 1,037 people were killed, mostly in Marrakech and five provinces near the epicenter, and 1,204 others were injured. Of the injured, 721 are in critical condition.

“I expect the death toll will eventually reach thousands. Like any major earthquake, aftershocks could cause more casualties and hinder search and rescue efforts,” McGuire said .

Nguyen Tuyet (Based on AP, NY Times, The Guardian)

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