On the night of Friday, September 8, 2023, at 11:10 p.m. (GMT+1), an earthquake measuring between 6.8 and 7 on the Richter scale occurred in several cities in central Morocco. The epicenter would be between Marrakesh and Agadir, with tremors widespread in Safi, Essaouira, Casablanca, Rabat, Salé, Kénitra, Fez and Meknes, among others.
The Portal news agency, citing the German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ), reports that the earthquake occurred at a depth of 27 km (16.78 miles). According to the United States Geological Service, cited by the same source, it would have occurred about 72 km east of the city of Marrakesh.
On social networks, Internet users in Morocco have published videos showing residents on the street. Property damage was reportedly recorded in some areas closest to the epicenter.
Preliminary: 7.0 magnitude earthquake, Morocco. On 09/08/2023 22:10:58 UTC (5 m ago, depth 10 km). https://t.co/Ds42iAMM6X#Earthquake
— Earthquake (@NewEarthquake) September 8, 2023
According to the first data published on the Volcano Discovery platform, where internet users can immediately report felt earthquakes, the tremors also affected regions of neighboring countries, in particular Mauritania, Algeria, Gibraltar and Portugal in the Iberian Peninsula.