The damage caused by the earthquake that struck Morocco during the night from Friday to Saturday is visible from space. Satellite images show the extent of the damage in several regions of the country, but in particular in the High Atlas, a mountainous region where the rural population is sometimes isolated from urban centers.
This earthquake, of magnitude 7 on the Richter scale, according to the Moroccan Center for Scientific and Technical Research (6.8 according to the Institute of Geological Studies of the United States), the most powerful having struck the kingdom throughout its history, has been felt particularly as far as Casablanca in the north or even in Agadir, in the southwest. This coastal city itself experienced a deadly earthquake in February 1960, killing nearly 15,000 people.
Using satellite images from the American company Maxar Technologies, The duty was able to extract images allowing us to see the damage in the regions most affected by the earthquake.
In the town of Talat N’Yaaqoub, south of Marrakech, the damage is striking: destroyed buildings follow one after the other on the main road that passes through the region. Spanish rescuers are currently on site.
A few kilometers away, in the capital of the commune of Ighil, epicenter of the earthquake, the main street of the village is cluttered with debris, making traffic difficult. Almost everywhere across the country, the same scenario is happening: while some remote villages show crying needs for aid and first aid, the damage caused by the earthquake drastically reduces access to these isolated places.
This is particularly the case in the commune of Imgdal, in the heart of the High Atlas. While several buildings could not resist the earthquakes, the main road leading to the village is blocked by landslides.
With Agence France-Presse