Deadly earthquake hits Morocco near Marrakesh – in pictures
A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck Morocco with an epicentre 75 kilometres west of Marrakesh, leaving more than 2,000 dead. Rescue efforts are still underway as the threat of aftershocks looms


Difficult search-and-rescue mission: people watch from a safe distance as emergency response workers search for survivors. On Sunday, the Arabic-language Moroccan online news site Hespress reported that Spanish search-and-rescue teams with sniffer dogs had arrived in the country to support local efforts

Deadly quake struck late at night: the powerful 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck Morocco late on Friday night just after 11 p.m. More than 2,000 people are dead and over 1,400 are in still in a critical condition, according to the Interior Ministry

Historic city of Marrakesh badly damaged: the earthquake occurred at a depth of 18.5 kilometres. The epicentre was situated in the High Atlas mountains, in the al-Haouz region of southwest Morocco. The historic city of Marrakesh, a popular tourist destination, is home to about 840,000 residents and located just 72 kilometres from the earthquake's epicentre

Fear of aftershocks causes panic overnight: unverified images on social media showed panicked people pouring onto the streets. Concerned about potential aftershocks, many Moroccans spent the night outdoors in various cities

Rescue operation begins: rescuers began searching for people trapped in the debris shortly after the earthquake hit. Health authorities are urging Moroccans to donate blood to assist the victims

Remote villages cut off: reaching people in villages where older buildings may be more susceptible to collapse will be extremely challenging, several officials have warned

Roads jammed with vehicles, fallen rocks: in the mountains, rescue efforts have been hindered as roads became congested with vehicles and blocked by fallen boulders, Moroccan media reported. The area is a favourite destination for mountaineers, with residents earning most of their income from tourism

UNESCO World Heritage Sites damaged: residents in Marrakesh have reported that some buildings collapsed in the historic old city, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Marrakesh’s renowned Koutoubia Mosque, constructed in the 12th century, suffered damage. Damage was also reported to the mosque's 69-metre minaret, often referred to as the "roof of Marrakesh", and parts of the iconic red walls encircling the old city

Strongest earthquake in a century: it was the strongest quake to hit the nation in over a century, according to the head of the National Institute of Geophysics in Morocco. In 1960, a 5.8 magnitude quake shook the port of Agadir and left at least 12,000 dead. A devastating earthquake near the Mediterranean coastal city of Al Hoceima in 2004 led to the loss of over 600 lives

Rural, historic buildings vulnerable to earthquakes: after the Agadir quake, Morocco changed its construction regulations. But many older buildings across the country have not been retrofitted to withstand such tremors

Three days of national mourning: Morocco has declared three days of national mourning following the deadly natural disaster. The national flag will be flown at half-mast throughout the country, the royal court said in a statement released on Saturday evening, a day after the quake



