Morocco quake deaths climb past 2,100, as rescuers race to find survivors
- The authorities have declared three days of national mourning after the 6.8-magnitude tremor, the country’s deadliest in decades
- Troops and emergency services are trying to reach remote mountain villages where casualties are still feared trapped
Using heavy equipment and even their bare hands, rescuers in Morocco on Sunday stepped up efforts to find survivors of a devastating earthquake that killed more than 2,100 people and flattened villages.
The first foreign rescuers flew in to help after the North African country’s strongest-ever earthquake killed at least 2,122 people and injured more than 2,400, many seriously, according to official figures updated late on Sunday.
Friday’s 6.8-magnitude quake struck 72 km (45 miles) southwest of the tourist hub of Marrakesh, wiping out entire villages in the hills of the Atlas mountains.
On Sunday an aftershock of 4.5-magnitude rattled already-traumatised residents in the same region.
The mountain village of Tafeghaghte, 60 km from Marrakesh, was almost entirely destroyed, an Agence France-Presser team reported, with very few buildings still standing.
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Morocco quake deaths climb past 2,000, as survivors rendered homeless
Authorities declared three days of national mourning, but the Red Cross warned that it could take years to repair the damage in the deadliest quake to hit Morocco in more than 60 years and the strongest in around 120.