2023-09-10 11:04:00
According to the Moroccan news site Hespress, a magnitude of 4.5 was recorded. This made conditions even more difficult for the helpers. The time window for the rescuers is becoming increasingly narrow.
“Some of the worst affected areas are quite remote and mountainous and therefore difficult to reach,” said the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). Hespress reported on Sunday that an emergency team from Spain with dogs had now arrived to support the local search parties.
Spain’s Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares spoke on Catalunya Radio on Sunday of a “sign of Spanish solidarity” and the “feeling of friendship” that connects the people of both countries. Accordingly, Morocco’s foreign minister had previously asked for help in a telephone conversation. A ministry spokesman explained that the government was ready to send 65 members of the UME military emergency unit “immediately”.
According to the Austrian Foreign Ministry, there are currently around 70 people from Austria in Morocco (as of Sunday morning). “Fortunately, we still have no information that any of them were injured,” said a spokeswoman. The Foreign Ministry is in constant contact with the Austrians, it said. They provide support in finding transport options and with questions regarding safety in Morocco.
It was also reported that no request for help from Morocco had yet been received in Austria. The federal government emphasized on Saturday that it was ready to help at any time. “The Ministry of the Interior and Defense are currently taking all precautions to provide support as soon as a corresponding request arises,” said Chancellor Karl Nehammer (ÖVP) in a statement on Saturday. Forces in other countries are also still ready for an aid mission in Morocco.
Aid organizations and NGOs have been working non-stop since Saturday. “The Moroccan Red Crescent (MRH) and its more than 8,000 volunteer employees have been in continuous operation since the early hours of yesterday,” Michael Opriesnig, Secretary General of the Austrian Red Cross, was quoted as saying in a broadcast on Sunday. The search and rescue of buried victims is still the focus of the helpers. “The time window for successful life rescues is becoming increasingly smaller,” warned Opriesnig.
On Sunday, the Secretary General also made an appeal to all people in Austria who were willing to help. “A lot of people from Austria and Germany contact us and want to help. However, we currently advise once morest traveling to the affected area,” he said. “The danger is too great and people from outside who have to be accommodated and fed represent an additional burden for aid organizations.” Financial support to professional NGOs or local initiatives would best support those affected in Morocco, it was said. Renewed calls for donations also came from Caritas and the relief organization on Sunday.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 300,000 people in the city of Marrakech and surrounding areas have been affected by the earthquake. They spent the second night in uncertainty and sadness. According to Moroccan authorities, the number of deaths has now risen to 2,012. At least 2,059 other people were injured, more than half of them seriously, as Moroccan media reported on Sunday night, citing the Interior Ministry.
Worst earthquake in decades
The quake on late Friday evening was the worst in Morocco in decades. King Mohammed VI ordered three days of national mourning. EU heads of state and government also offered their help and expressed their condolences in a letter to the king, including from Germany. “As close friends and partners of Morocco, we are ready to help you in any way you find useful,” wrote the government in Berlin. They are checking whether Germans are also among the victims in the disaster areas. There is currently no knowledge of this, the Foreign Office in Berlin said on Saturday followingnoon.
The epicenter was a good 70 kilometers southwest of Marrakesh in the Atlas Mountains. There are towns along steep and winding serpentines. Since earthquakes occur relatively rarely in North Africa, experts believe that buildings are not built robustly enough to withstand such strong shaking. The main quake of magnitude 6.8 caused panic late on Friday evening.
Some buildings were destroyed and famous cultural monuments were damaged in areas from the Atlas Mountains to Marrakesh’s old town. The quake was felt within a radius of 400 kilometers, said Nasser Jabour, head of a department at the National Institute of Geophysics, to the Moroccan news agency MAP. It lasted for several seconds. According to the US Earthquake Observatory USGS, the quake occurred at a depth of 18.5 kilometers. According to experts, earthquakes at such shallow depths are particularly dangerous.
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