Africa
Morocco Suffers ‘Strongest Earthquake In Over 120 Years’ As More Than 800 Residents Die
Eko Hot Blog reports that a powerful 6.8-magnitude earthquake struck near Marrakech, Morocco, on Friday night, killing more than 800 people.
According to Morocco’s state television Al Aoula, which cited the country’s Interior Ministry, the quake has killed at least 820 people and injured at least 672.
There are 205 people in critical condition, Al Aoula added.
A woman reacts standing in front of her earthquake-damaged house. Fadel Senna/AFP/Getty Images
The toll makes the quake the deadliest earthquake to hit Morocco in decades.
According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), it was the strongest tremor to hit that part of the North African nation in more than 120 years.
With a magnitude of 6.8, it is categorized as “strong” on the magnitude scale.
Not since 2004 has the country seen a comparative disaster, when a 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck the port city of Al Hoceima.
A woman looks at the rubble of a building. Fadel Senna/AFP/Getty Images
That earthquake left around 630 people dead and caused widespread damage.
Morocco’s worst earthquake of modern times was in 1960 near the western city of Agadir which killed at least 12,000 people.
Earthquakes of this size in the region are uncommon, according to the USGS, but not unexpected. It noted that there have been nine quakes with a magnitude of 5 or higher since 1900, however none of them have had a magnitude higher than 6.
On the scale, each increase of one whole number results in 32 times more strength.
Residents take shelter outside at a square. Fadel Senna/AFP/Getty Images
Jonathan Stewart, a professor of civil and environmental engineering from the University of California, Los Angeles, told CNN that while the quake was 30 times weaker than the 7.8 magnitude quake that hit Turkey earlier this year, it still released “a tremendous amount of energy” and was likely to do substantial damage.
CNN
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