Three days a week after the major earthquake in Morocco, hope for survivors diminishes. The search for hundreds of missing people continues in hard-to-reach areas. For the emergency services it is a race against time: experts give a guideline of 72 hours in which a person can survive without water.
As people spent a third straight night on the streets of Marrakech and other places fearing further aftershocks, soldiers with the support of foreign aid teams tried to advance to remote mountain villages. On Monday, military helicopters dropped aid packages over hard-to-reach areas.
Nearly 2,900 deaths
Authorities have now set up field hospitals near the epicenter to treat the injured, Justice Minister Abdel Latif Wehbe told Arabic television channel Al-Arabiya on Monday. The exact number of deaths and extent of damage cannot be clarified at this time. According to official information, at least 2,862 people were killed and at least 2,562 other people were injured across the country. The number of victims will likely continue to rise.
The government in Morocco has announced a special fund for the needy population. This was intended, among other things, to cover the costs of securing damaged homes, the news site ‘Hespress’ reported, citing a government spokesperson. There was initially no information about the amount of the support fund.
Bulldozers must clear the way
Bulldozers must be used to clear landslides from roads in the rugged terrain so that ambulances can pass through, as the online newspaper “Morocco World News” reported. Britain is in Morocco with 60 search and rescue experts and four sniffer dogs to support operations. A special Spanish military unit with sniffer dogs is also taking part in the rescue work.
Although 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 a lack of coordination would lead to negative results, Hespress reported. That is why they initially responded “to the offer of support from the friendly countries Spain, Qatar, Great Britain and the United Arab Emirates.”
Emergency workers “double burdened”
Within the first three days after such a devastating earthquake, buried people would have a chance of survival. In this time frame there is a “good chance of finding and saving the living,” Walter Hajek of the Austrian Red Cross told Ö1. Search measures are often continued outside these areas as well. “It is then up to the local civil protection authority to make this decision,” Hajek said. The helpers are currently faced with a double burden: in addition to searching and rescuing the buried, they also have to care for and care for the survivors, “many 10,000 people,” according to the expert, who now need to be sheltered. their relatives and all their belongings are well lost.
The earthquake late Friday evening was the worst in Morocco in decades. It had a magnitude of 6.8. King Mohammed VI declared three days of national mourning. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 300,000 people in Marrakech and surrounding areas have been affected.
The EU is making one million euros available
The European Union is making one million euros available for humanitarian aid. “The tragic earthquake in Morocco has caused terrible suffering and loss of life,” said EU Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response Janez Lenarcic. The amount should help cover the most urgent needs of the most affected people. The Commission is also in contact with EU countries to mobilize emergency teams if Morocco requests it.
Source: Krone
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