The number of injured stood at 329, state media reported on Saturday, citing an updated initial casualty toll from the Interior Ministry.Residents of Marrakech, the nearest big city to the epicentre, said some buildings had collapsed in the old city, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Local television showed pictures of a fallen mosque minaret with rubble lying on smashed cars.
"Our neighbours are under the rubble and people are working hard to rescue them using available means in the village," he said.Residents take shelter outside at a square following an earthquake in Marrakesh on 9 September 2023."The earth shook for about 20 seconds. Doors opened and shut by themselves as I rushed downstairs from the second floor," he said.
The earthquake is Morocco's deadliest since a 2004 tremor near Al Hoceima in the northern Rif mountains killed over 600 people. Another Marrakech resident, Brahim Himmi, said he saw ambulances coming out of the old town and many building facades damaged. He said people were frightened and were staying outside in case of another quake.
People in the capital city of Rabat, about 350 km north of Ighil, and in the coastal town of Imsouane, about 180 km to its west, also fled their homes, fearing a stronger quake, according to Reuters witnesses.