At least 632 people were killed in Morocco after a powerful earthquake struck late Friday night near Marrakech, according to state-run television.
The death toll has surged from the earlier 296 dead and 153 injured figures that were given by the country’s interior ministry. Most deaths were reported from Morocco’s hard-to-reach mountainous areas, according to Reuters.
The epicentre of the quake was reported to be at the High Atlas mountains in the Ighil area, about 70km south of Marrakech.
It was said to be about 18km below the Earth’s surface by the US Geological Survey (USGS), while Morocco’s own National Seismic Monitoring and Alert Network, estimated it to be 11km below. Shallow quakes such as this are said to be more dangerous.
The tremors, measured at a 7.2 magnitude by Morocco’s own seismic agency, toppled several buildings across cities and sent people running from their homes late at night.