Rabat, 09 Sept (HS):- The number of casualties has risen to over 600 in the powerful earthquake that struck Atlas Mountain in Morocco late at night on Friday. So far deaths of 632 people have been confirmed in the rare earthquake. A large number of buildings from villages in the Atlas Mountains were damaged.
State television and the Morocco Interior Ministry confirmed the death of 632 people and injuries to 329 others. The majority of deaths occurred in the villages in the mountains. The number of casualties is expected to rise as the rescue teams are facing difficulties in reaching these villages. People in a prominent historical city Marrakech suffered the most. Some buildings which have been listed in Unesco’s World Heritage Sites were damaged.
State television showed people gathered in streets late at night, afraid to go back inside buildings. Montasir Iteri from Asni village in the hilly region said that most of the houses in the village were damaged. His neighbours were buried under the debris. A teacher Hamid Afkar said that the earth shook for about 20 seconds. He ran to an open ground from his apartment on the second floor.
Morocco Geo-physics Centre said that the earthquake struck in the Eghil region of Atlas and was recorded at 7.2 on the Richter Scale. The American Geological Centre, however, recorded it of an intensity of 6.8.
Hindusthan Samachar/ Ajay Mardikar/ Mukund/ Dadhibal/Indrani
