Morocco earthquake
The situation
Near midnight local time on Friday, a devastating 6.8-magnitude earthquake hit the Al-Haouz region of Morocco.
The epicenter of the earthquake was in the High Atlas mountains less than 45 miles from Marrakesh, an ancient city that is home to around 840,000 people. Its impacts reached beyond nearby Marrakesh to 200 miles away in Rabat and Casablanca. The affected area is home to about 1.8 million people, and is also the area in Morocco where CARE primarily works.
More than 2,100 people have died, with thousands injured and hundreds in critical condition. These numbers are expected to grow as search and rescue efforts expand.
“Many already struggled in Morocco prior to the earthquake. Now, hundreds of thousands have lost everything in a matter of seconds,” said Deepmala Mahla, CARE’s Vice President of Humanitarian Affairs. “Every hour, the level of devastation is increasing.”
Regional authorities and the Red Crescent of Morocco are coordinating the emergency relief effort and have mobilized hospitals and firefighters and established crisis centres.
Rescue efforts have been severely hampered by damage to roads and bridges that have cut off many remote mountain towns in the most impacted areas.
The Atlas mountain range can be difficult to traverse in the best of circumstances. Boulder-strewn highways have left entire communities completely isolated.
Help provide emergency water, food, shelter and psychosocial support.
How we are responding
CARE’s teams on the ground are working to get emergency water, food, and psychosocial support to survivors.
CARE already has a presence in the earthquake-affected areas of Morocco, and will support the Moroccan authorities as they lead emergency operations by shifting our existing programs to respond to urgent and growing needs. As the situation on the ground evolves, CARE will adapt as needed to ensure that we can provide timely, culturally appropriate and gender-sensitive assistance to families in need. Earthquake-affected families have suffered not only a physical toll, but also a mental one. People near the epicenter of the earthquake experienced severe trauma, and they will require psychosocial support.
Our emergency response will prioritize women and girls, youth and disadvantaged groups.
CARE has been in Morocco since 2008 increasing access to basic services for the most vulnerable. Our work focuses on education, economic empowerment and governance. CARE works extensively in Al Haouz, one of the cities that was most impacted by the earthquake.
