Summary

  • The number of people killed in Friday's powerful earthquake in Morocco has risen to 2,681, the interior ministry says

  • Rescuers have been using their bare hands to dig for survivors

  • Heavy lifting equipment can't get through roads blocked by boulders to reach remote villages near the epicentre in the Atlas Mountains

  • Many lie in ruins with local people desperately awaiting aid

  • The Moroccan government says it has accepted aid from four countries so far - Britain, Spain, Qatar and the UAE

  • Friday's earthquake, the country's deadliest in 60 years, struck below villages in the High Atlas mountains south of Marrakesh

  • BBC reporter Nick Beake reached the village of Tafeghaghte, where 90 of the 200 residents were confirmed dead, and many others missing

  1. Young boy killed after going to fetch a knife during dinnerpublished at 08:23 British Summer Time 11 September 2023

    Hamid ben Henna walking through the rubbleImage source, Reuters
    Image caption,

    Hamid ben Henna lost his eight-year-old son in the earthquake

    Hamid ben Henna was having dinner with his family on Friday when he asked his young son to fetch a knife from the kitchen to cut a melon.

    His son, Marouane went to get one when the room began to shake and the lights went out. Rubble starting to fall from the ceiling in the family home in the High Atlas Mountains.

    Ben Henna told Reuters news agency: "It all started at 11pm or 11:30pm. Marouane didn’t bring it because as soon as he left the kitchen the earthquake struck."

    He said the eight-year-old was buried by a 1.5 to 2m of rubble.

    Fatima, Marouane's mother said: "There was no light. We were in darkness and under the dust. We heard the quake, rocks and walls falling. But at first we didn’t realise what was going on."

    As their house collapsed Ben Henna and his other son, Mouad managed to open the door into the alleyway and free his wife and small daughter.

    But as the dust settled they realised that Marouane had not made it. His body was recovered on Saturday.

  2. Where was the earthquake's epicentre?published at 08:12 British Summer Time 11 September 2023

    A map shows the epicentre south of Marrakesh on Morocco's west coastImage source, .

    The epicentre of the quake was in the High Atlas Mountains, 71km (44 miles) south-west of Marrakesh, according to the US Geological Survey.

    The area is known for small farming villages, which have been devastated by the quake. The worst-hit area is the al-Haouz province.

    Some parts of Marrakesh's historic medina, a Unesco heritage site, and its network of alleyways saw significant damage.

    It's the biggest earthquake the area has seen in over a century, and it's unusual for such a powerful one to strike in Morocco.

    Aftershocks will continue for days, perhaps weeks, Rémy Bossu, the director of the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre told the BBC yesterday.

    Read more: Earthquake of this magnitude unusual for Morocco

  3. WATCH: Moment wedding is interrupted by earthquakepublished at 07:44 British Summer Time 11 September 2023

    Video footage shows the moment a powerful earthquake interrupted a music performance at a wedding in Morocco.

    In the clip, a singer and musicians can be seen abandoning the stage and fleeing through a doorway at a ceremony in Marrakesh.

    WARNING: You may find scenes in the video distressing.

  4. Residents dig out the dead in remote areaspublished at 07:29 British Summer Time 11 September 2023

    Tom Bateman
    Reporting from the Atlas Mountains

    A woman sat in rubbleImage source, EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock/ 10 September
    Image caption,

    Entire houses have been destroyed in Moulay Brahim

    Many people have spent a third night out in the open and we've seen rubble strewn across streets of collapsed homes.

    Some of the villages are completely wiped out. Here in Moulay Brahim, many, many homes are destroyed.

    I was just talking to one man who is living with his wife in a van with a tent outside. He said that they've already pulled 40 bodies out of the rubble - which involves local residents digging themselves with their bare hands.

    A big problem is getting the machinery up to this very remote region.

    We've just made the drive from Marrakesh. As we tried to get to this village, one road was completely blocked.

    Some aid is getting to these parts but a lot of it is being delivered by charities. These areas are going to be extremely hard to get to.

    Many residents are saying it still seems very slow and uncoordinated in terms of the local response.

  5. 'Local responders are exhausted' - ICRCpublished at 07:12 British Summer Time 11 September 2023

    The emergency response to Friday's earthquake is now into a phase where international help is really needed, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies' director for the region has told the BBC.

    This morning, Hossam El Sharkawi said "survivors, as many reports have shown us, are needing food and water, blankets, shelter and some medicines".

    He said the organisation has 20-30 years experience in similar situations and is now mobilising rapid-response specific earthquake teams.

    "We know how this goes. We know the playbook. They will need international assistance.

    "The local responders have done a fantastic job to date but they are exhausted on the third day. And they will need that additional help."

    Morocco has accepted emergency aid from Britain, Spain, Qatar and the UAE and the government has said it may accept further offers in future.

  6. What's the latest?published at 07:00 British Summer Time 11 September 2023

    Mohamed Sebbagh, 66, stands in front of his destroyed house, in the aftermath of a deadly earthquake, in Amizmiz, Morocco, September 10Image source, Reuters
    Image caption,

    Mohamed Sebbagh, 66, next to the remains of his home in Amizmiz, on Sunday

    If you're just joining us this Monday morning, here's what we currently know about the earthquake that devastated parts of Morocco on Friday:

    • More than 2,100 people have died and more than 2,421 are injured, many critically
    • The desperate hunt for survivors continues, but response teams are struggling to bring in machinery to remote areas
    • Villagers have been digging by hand and shovel to find survivors
    • The 6.8-magnitude tremor left homes collapsed, roads blocked and entire villages destroyed
    • The Moroccan government says it has accepted emergency aid from the UK, Spain, Qatar and the UAE, and rescue teams from those countries are en route

  7. They tried to flag down a truck. It kept on drivingpublished at 06:40 British Summer Time 11 September 2023

    Carine Torbey and Noura Majdoub
    Reporting from Asni

    There are signs of the growing frustration at the little help reaching towns and villages in the hardest- hit mountainous areas outside of Marrakesh.

    Asni is just 50km (30 miles) from Marrakesh, but people say they urgently need aid to be delivered.

    "We don't have food, we don't have bread nor vegetables. We have nothing," said one man in a crowd, venting to a reporter.

    "No-one came to us, we don't have anything. We only have God and the king."

    Angry crowds awaiting aid surrounded a local reporter in Asni
    Image caption,

    An angry crowd awaiting aid surrounded a local reporter in Asni

    Since the earthquake he has been living on the side of the village's main road with his four children.

    As a truck drove past the crowd some people tried to flag it down, desperately hoping it carried supplies. But it just headed on, followed by jeers.

  8. Marrakesh hospital worker says they lost 10 relativespublished at 06:25 British Summer Time 11 September 2023

    In Marrakesh, hospital worker Manel has told the BBC said she has lost 10 relatives in the quake, in villages outside the city where access is difficult.

    "We cannot do anything from now because we wanted to go and help but we cannot go because the road is closed.

    "They should open the roads... so we can go.

    "For now, we don't have any other information because the internet and everything isn't working there."

    "The situation is very hard but we are trying to find any solution, anything, that we can be doing as Moroccans to help our brothers and other people who are injured or dead or the families of the dead people in that earthquake."

  9. Watch: What's left of mountain villages?published at 05:58 British Summer Time 11 September 2023

    Media caption,

    Morocco earthquake: Videos show what's left of stricken rural areas

    Watch this video to see the impact on some of the worst-hit areas of southern Morocco - which have become the focus of rescue efforts.

    Al-Haouz, Amizmiz and Asni are among the places in and around the High Atlas mountains that have been partially destroyed.

  10. Devastation and despair in Tafeghaghtepublished at 05:45 British Summer Time 11 September 2023

    As we've been reporting, the small village of Tafeghaghte was nearly completely wiped out by the earthquake - with close to half of its 200 inhabitants killed.

    "People in this village are either in hospital or dead," one local told the BBC.

    A woman wails and is supported by others after hearing confirmation of her family members' deathsImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    A woman wails after hearing confirmation of her family members' deaths

    Mourners stand next to rows of bodies wrapped in rugs, laid out in a rowImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    At least 90 people have died in the village

    People clamber over rubble and debris, inspecting the ground for signs of lifeImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    People are still trying to find loved ones. Most buildings were completely destroyed

  11. Born just minutes before the quakepublished at 05:28 British Summer Time 11 September 2023

    Carine Torbey and Noura Majdoub
    Reporting from Asni

    Khadija holds her baby in a tent by the side of the road in Asni, in the Atlas ranges

    Khadija's baby doesn't even have a name yet, but her first home is a tent by the side of the road.

    She was born just minutes before Morocco's deadly earthquake struck on Friday night.

    Though the mother and daughter were unhurt, the hospital in Marrakesh they were in was evacuated. After a quick check up, they were asked to leave just three hours after the birth.

    "They told us we had to go due to the fear of aftershocks," she said.

    With their newborn, Khadija and her husband tried to take a taxi early on Saturday to their home in Taddart in the Atlas Mountains, about 65km (40 miles) from Marrakesh.

    But on their way there they found the roads blocked by landslides, and only made it as far as the village of Asni. The family have been living in a tent by the side of the main road since.

    "I haven't received any help or assistance from authorities," she told us, holding her baby while sheltering from the sun under a flimsy piece of tarpaulin.

  12. Foreign teams join quake rescuepublished at 05:10 British Summer Time 11 September 2023

    Qatari rescuers on a transport plane heading for Morocco, 10 September 2023Image source, Reuters
    Image caption,

    Qatari rescuers on a transport plane heading for Morocco

    Emergency workers from outside Morocco have now joined the rescue effort – much-needed help, as each hour that passes reduces the chances of finding survivors.

    Rabat has accepted aid offers from Spain, the UK, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. France, the US and some other countries say they are also ready to help.

    Spain has sent 86 specialist rescuers in two teams, with four sniffer dogs each.

    The UK government is sending 60 rescuers with four dogs, on two military transport planes, along with a small medical team. The British kit includes seismic listening devices and concrete cutting and breaking tools for reaching people trapped in rubble.

    Several planes have also taken off from Qatar carrying rescue teams and emergency aid.

    The Moroccan authorities say they are carefully assessing aid offers because "a lack of co-ordination could be counterproductive".

  13. 'I lost my wife and three boys'published at 04:52 British Summer Time 11 September 2023

    Nick Beake
    Reporting from the High Atlas Mountains

    Abdou Rahman (L), pictured with his nephew
    Image caption,

    Abdou Rahman (L), pictured with his nephew, lost his family in the earthquake

    The mountain village of Tafeghaghte, 60km (37 miles) south-west of Marrakesh, is devastated. So far 90 of its 200 residents are confirmed dead.

    Abdou Rahman lost his wife and his three boys.

    "Our house was up there," he says pointing to the area where it once stood. It is now just part of an expanse of debris.

    "You can see the white blankets and the furniture too. Everything else has gone."

    Abdou Rahman says he ran 3km home from the petrol station where he worked after the earthquake hit.

    He says he instinctively began calling out for his children, his shouts joining a din of others doing the same. There was no reply for him.

    "We buried them yesterday," he says.

    "When we found them, they were all huddled together. The three boys were asleep. They went down with the earthquake."

  14. Moroccan rescuers dig for survivors with bare handspublished at 04:48 British Summer Time 11 September 2023

    James FitzGerald
    Live reporter

    In remote mountain villages south of Marrakesh rescuers are battling to find survivors after Friday night’s deadly earthquake.

    They’ve been using their bare hands as the authorities struggle to send equipment up rubble-strewn roads, and some villages lie in ruins.

    The official death toll stands at more than 2,100, but there have been repeat warnings that this is likely to increase as the scale of the devastation gets clearer.

    Frances Mao, Laurence Peter and I are here to keep you informed – including with the latest material sent to us by our correspondents on the ground.