Death toll exceeds 600 after powerful earthquake strikes Morocco
Magnitude 6.8 quake struck about 72km south-west of Marrakesh
The ruins of a street in Marrakesh after Friday’s earthquake. Reuters
Here’s what we know about the earthquake in Morocco:
An earthquake in Morocco’s High Atlas Mountains has killed at least 632 people, according to the country’s Interior Ministry.
The deaths were in Marrakesh and in areas to the south.
The magnitude-6.8 quake’s epicentre was at a depth of 18.5km and occurred in the Atlas Mountains, about 72km south-west of Marrakesh at just after 11pm local time, according to the US Geological Survey.
The tremor toppled buildings and sent people fleeing from their homes in several cities on Friday.
More than 150 have been taken to hospital for treatment.
Country experiences frequent earthquakes and last major tremor, in 2004, killed 628 people.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has expressed his sympathy over the earthquake that hit Morocco and left hundreds of people dead and injured.
“In these difficult hours, our thoughts are with the victims of the devastating earthquake. Our sympathy goes to all those affected by this natural disaster,” he said in a post on social media site X, formerly Twitter.
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