After widespread devastation, rescue mission in Morocco has intensified and search for survivors have increased after Friday’s deadly earthquake that claimed more than 2000 lives.
The 6.8-magnitude earthquake destroyed entire communities in the Atlas Mountains’ slopes 72 kilometres (45 miles) southwest of Marrakesh, a popular tourist destination. The epicentre was noted at 72 kilometres west of Marrakesh, a major economic centre.
According to official numbers reworked late on Sunday, the largest earthquake to ever hit the country of North Africa resulted in at least 2,122 fatalities and more than 2,400 injuries, many of them critically, prompting the first foreign rescuers to fly in to assist. Both survivors and the bodies of the deceased were sought by civilian rescuers and Moroccan military personnel.
A magnitude 4.5 aftershock struck the same area on Sunday. Nearly every building in the mountain village of Tafeghaghte, which is 60 kilometres (37 miles) from Marrakesh, has been destroyed due to the quake. According to reports
Earlier on Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the loss of lives in the quake.