The search for hundreds of missing people continues in hard-to-reach areas. For emergency services, it’s a race against time: experts give a guideline of 72 hours during which a person can survive at most without water.
Half a week after the serious earthquake in Morocco, hope for survivors is fading. The search for hundreds of missing people continues in hard-to-reach areas. For emergency services, it’s a race against time: experts give a guideline of 72 hours during which a person can survive at most without water. According to official information, at least 2,862 people were killed across the country and at least 2,562 other people were injured. The final death toll is still unclear and the extent of the damage cannot yet be quantified, Justice Minister Abdel Latif Wehbe said.
As people spent the third consecutive night on the streets of Marrakech and elsewhere fearing further aftershocks, soldiers, with the support of foreign aid teams, tried to advance to remote villages in the mountains. Authorities have now set up field hospitals near the epicenter to care for the injured, Justice Minister Abdel Latif Wehbe told Arabic television channel Al-Arabiya on Monday. The exact number of deaths and damage cannot be clarified at this time. On Monday, military helicopters dropped aid packages over hard-to-reach areas.
Government announces special fund
The Moroccan government announced a special fund for the population in need. The aim was, among other things, to cover security costs for damaged homes, the “Hespress” news website reported, citing a government spokesperson. Initially there was no information about the amount of the aid fund.
Bulldozers have to be used to clear landslides on roads in rough terrain so that ambulances can pass, as the online newspaper “Morocco World News” reported. Britain is in Morocco with 60 search and rescue specialists and four search dogs to support operations, British Ambassador Simon Martin said on social media platform X (formerly Twitter). A special Spanish military unit with search dogs is also taking part in the rescue work.
While other countries, including Austria and Germany, also offered help, Morocco initially only accepted support from four countries. The Interior Ministry said late on Sunday that authorities had carried out an accurate needs assessment. It was taken into account that lack of coordination would lead to adverse outcomes, reported the Moroccan news website Hespress. For this reason, initially “they responded to offers of support from friendly countries Spain, Qatar, Great Britain and the United Arab Emirates”.
Race against time
In the first three days after such a devastating earthquake, the buried people have a chance to survive. In this window of time there is a “good chance of finding and saving the living”, said Walter Hajek of the Austrian Red Cross in the Ö1 Lunchtime newspaper. Research measures are also often continued beyond this. “It is then up to the local civil protection authority to make this decision,” said Hajek. The helpers currently face a double burden: in addition to searching for and rescuing the buried, they also have to look after and care for the survivors, “many 10,000 people”, according to the expert, who now have to be housed, their relatives and all their belongings are well lost.
The earthquake on Friday night was the worst in Morocco in decades. It had a magnitude of 6.8. King Mohammed VI ordered three days of national mourning. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 300,000 people in Marrakech and surrounding areas were affected.
The EU provides one million euros
The European Union provides one million euros for humanitarian aid. “The tragic earthquake in Morocco caused terrible suffering and loss of life,” said EU Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response Janez Lenarcic. The sum should help cover the most urgent needs of those most affected. The Commission is also in contact with EU States to mobilize emergency teams, should Morocco request it.
France is supporting the use of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in the country with five million euros, Foreign Affairs Minister Catherine Colonna told broadcaster BFMTV in Paris on Monday. Morocco initially did not respond to the offer to send rescue teams. This caused a lot of discussion in France, where many Moroccans live. Colonna rejected the idea that tensions between the two countries could be the reason for this.
Germany, however, has once again offered help and could send a plant to treat drinking water, said a spokesman for the Interior Ministry in Berlin. On Saturday, the German federal government had already offered to support the rescue effort with the Technical Assistance Agency (THW). However, the Rabat government showed no interest. When asked whether the resignation could have political reasons, a Foreign Office spokesperson responded: “I think political reasons can be excluded in our case.” Diplomatic relations with Morocco are good. The dispute over Western Sahara plunged German-Moroccan relations into a deep crisis in 2021. At the height of the crisis, Morocco withdrew its ambassador from Berlin for several months. In the summer of 2022, the two countries became closer again.
Psychological help is also needed
“The last few nights in Morocco were terrible. Hundreds of people sleep on the streets or lie in parks with blankets, afraid to return home. The people are exhausted. In addition to the enormous physical devastation, the emotional damage caused by the horror experienced and the fear suffered is also very serious,” said Hlima Razkaoui, secretary general of the NGO Care Morocco. “Now it is important to support people not only with humanitarian aid, such as food, water, shelter and hygiene products, but also psychologically.”
The need for relief supplies in the earthquake region of the Atlas Mountains is great. According to the Moroccan Red Crescent, there is a lack of shelter, food and clean water. The Austrian Red Cross could help with WASH (“Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Promotion”) tools if support is requested, said WCC general secretary Michael Opriesnig.
According to the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, there are currently around 130 registered travelers from Austria in Morocco (as of Monday morning) – so the number of tourists registering has increased slightly, as it usually happens after such events. “Fortunately, we still have no information that any of them were injured,” a spokeswoman said. (APA)