A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck Morocco on Friday night, which the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said was the strongest to hit this part of the North African country this for over 120 years. State television reported that several buildings had collapsed nearby. epicenter.
The earthquake occurred shortly after 11 p.m. Local time, at a relatively shallow depth of 18.5 kilometers (11.4 miles), the epicenter in the High Atlas Mountains was about 72 kilometers (44.7 miles) southwest of Marrakech, the USGS said. famous tourist destination.
“Earthquakes of this magnitude in the region are rare but not unexpected. Since 1900, there have been no earthquakes of M6 (magnitude 6) or higher within a 500 km radius of this earthquake, and only 9 earthquakes of M5 (magnitude 5) or higher,” USGS said.
The US agency predicts that "significant damage is likely and the disaster is likely to be widespread", noting that many people in the area reside in structures that are "extremely vulnerable to earthquakes". ". State broadcaster Al-Aoula on Saturday showed several buildings near the epicenter had collapsed.
In Marrakech, several houses in the densely populated medina collapsed and residents had to move debris by hand while waiting for heavy equipment, local resident Id Waaziz Hassan told Reuters news agency.
Another Marrakech resident, Brahim Himmi, told Reuters he saw ambulances leaving the old town and many building facades damaged. He added that people were scared and stayed outside in case of another earthquake.
Reuters cited tremors also being felt in the capital Rabat, about 350 km north of the High Atlas mountains.