Maps: Where the Earthquake Struck Morocco

An earthquake, which had a magnitude of at least 6.8, struck Morocco on Friday, devastating a region where many vulnerable buildings were unable to withstand the shaking. Official estimates of the death toll grew into the thousands on Sunday.

Sources: U.S. Geological Survey (earthquake intensity reported as of Sept. 10 at 4 p.m. in Morocco); WorldPop (population data)

The New York Times

Rubble filled some alleyways in Marrakesh, one of Morocco’s largest cities, but the highest death tolls so far have been reported in the small communities of the High Atlas mountains. Mud brick buildings common to the region — some of which date back to before Morocco’s colonization by the French — were reduced to a collapsed sand castle.

Reports on social media said that some villages had yet to receive any assistance more than a day after the earthquake.

Some roads appeared to be blocked by landslides and phone service had been knocked out in many places, making rescues harder.

As of Sunday, the largest number of victims accounted for so far are in the Al Haouz province, a mountainous region of small hillside towns south of Marrakesh, and Taroudant, south of the epicenter. Many of the areas affected by the quake are remote mountain villages that are not easily accessed by emergency teams.

The quake was the strongest to hit the area in more than a century. The U.S. Geological Survey called serious earthquakes in Morocco “uncommon but not unexpected.”

The most deadly earthquake in Morocco’s recent history struck near Agadir in 1960, killing at least 12,000 people. The coastal city is located 80 miles southwest of the epicenter of Friday’s quake.