The number of victims from the earthquake that struck Morocco last Friday amounts, according to the calculation carried out until 10:00 local time (GMT 1), to 2,497 dead and 2,476 injured, according to a note from the Moroccan Ministry of the Interior.
According to the latest data released by this department, deaths were recorded in a dozen provinces, but the most affected are Al Haouz, - south of Marrakech and close to the epicenter -, with 1,452 deaths, followed by Taroudant (764 fatalities), Chichaoua (202 deaths).
A seismic alert bulletin released by the Moroccan National Institute of Geophysics explains that the earthquake, of magnitude 7, shook the northern Moroccan region of Marrakech and occurred at 11:11 p.m. local time on Friday (10:11 p.m. GMT) at a depth of 8 kilometers. It had its epicenter in the town of Ighil, located about 80 kilometers southwest of the city of Marrakech.
In the main affected areas, rescue operations continue this Monday, to which the first Spanish rescue teams joined this Sunday. In a statement, the Ministry of the Interior indicated that the country's authorities could resort to more international aid as the rescue efforts progress. So far it has accepted help from four countries: Spain, Qatar, the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates.
The same source points out that the Moroccan authorities carried out "a precise assessment" of the needs on the ground, and specifies that "the lack of coordination" in aid management could have counterproductive results.
"With the progress of the intervention operations that the evaluation of possible needs evolves, this would lead to resorting to the offers of support proposed by other friendly countries according to the needs of each stage," the ministry assured.
The urban search and rescue team, made up of 56 soldiers and four dogs, moved from Marrakech to Tala N'Yaaqoub, an area located 25 kilometers from the epicenter of the earthquake, and became the first certificate to reach the area of emergency.
Groups of Spanish firefighters also arrived in Marrakech this Sunday to collaborate with the Moroccan authorities in the rescue efforts.
While rescue operations continue, several villagers reported that 17 mountain villages in the Imgdal region, about 77 kilometers south of Marrakech and about 50 kilometers from the epicenter of the earthquake, remain isolated without basic aid.
