Return to Morocco, one month after the earthquake

It is still time to clear the rubble, one month to the day, after the deadly earthquake which particularly affected the mountainous region of the Atlas. Aurore Chaffangeon has lived in Morocco for 23 years, and remembers this famous evening of September 8, when she was at home in Marraekch:

“My house completely moved. It felt like a train was passing through the ground floor with a deafening noise. It was very impressive.”

Creator of a fashion and tourism magazine, Madam in Marrakechthe Frenchwoman has also been managing for two years a center intended to offer cultural activities to 700 children from disadvantaged neighborhoods of Marrakech, “The Stars of Jemaâ El Fna”.

If the city was relatively spared, apart from Mellah, the old Jewish quarter of the medina which was completely destroyed, it was the small villages up to 70 kilometers around Marrakech which suffered the most. More than 50,000 homes were partially or completely destroyed.

A month later, the number of homeless people exploded. They try to survive outside, or in tents that replace collapsed houses. What worries the authorities today is the arrival of the first cold weather and the first rains.

“The tents under which people are installed are not insulated, underlines the Frenchwoman. As soon as it rains, it will slide underground. There are still rocks that may fall. It’s more complicated.” In all, more than 500 schools were destroyed by the earthquake.

How to rebuild destroyed houses

After clearing the rubble, a daunting ordeal still in progress, the question is how to rebuild the destroyed houses. “Those who really collapsed are those who were only on the ground, Aurore observes. Those built with peat, stone and wood held up very well. And these are the truly traditional Moroccan ones.

Do we continue to reuse the land? Do we use concrete or things a little quicker but just as effective, so as not to disfigure the villages either, and to be able to ensure that they regain their appearance?”

As for the strong criticism that appeared in France, when Morocco refused its aid, Aurore Chaffangeon puts this down to a “certain arrogance”, according to her, of the former colonial power:

“In 48 hours, the military and the royal armed forces were in the mountains. It was extremely well managed. Morocco chose the countries that were going to help, also based on specific skills. Morocco did not need of France and France did not understand it.”

After a few days of hesitation, the Frenchwoman also assures that Marrakech has found a good part of the vacationers who go there every year:

“I see around me tourists who came with two suitcases: one for themselves, and in the second, they took warm clothes, sleeping bags or flashlights saying: we are coming, but we will not come for nothing no more! People must continue to come, and life must return to its normal course.”

The Moroccan authorities announced a budget of 11 billion euros, intended for the reconstruction of devastated areas.

Go further

The “Stars of Jemaâ El Fna” in Marrakech

Her magazine, “Madame in Marrakech”

A video shot on September 22 by Aurore Chaffangeon showing the damage from the earthquake in Talaat N’Yacout, two hours from Marrakech and 12 km from the epicenter.

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