Morocco extends health emergency as virus cases spike

Parents accompany children to school on the first day of classes amid measures put in place by Moroccan authorities in bid to stop the spread of Covid-19, in the city of Sale on September 7, 2020. (AFP)
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Updated 10 September 2020
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Morocco extends health emergency as virus cases spike

  • Morocco’s economic capital of Casablanca, with 3.3 million residents, has been under lockdown since Monday, including a nighttime curfew and closure of schools

RABAT: Morocco’s government on Wednesday extended a medical state of emergency until next month in the face of a sharp rise in coronavirus cases.

“Today, the cabinet approved a project for a decree extending until October 10 the duration of the medical state of emergency to combat Covid-19,” Prime Minister Saad-Eddine El-Othmani tweeted.

Morocco’s economic capital of Casablanca, with 3.3 million residents, has been under lockdown since Monday, including a nighttime curfew and closure of schools.

Emergency measures were first put in place in March.

Casablanca, along with Marrakesh, had already been subject to a series of restrictions three weeks ago, including beach closures and shortened business hours.

All exits to major cities in the North African country have been closed, with travel only allowed with “exceptional authorization” issued by local authorities.

“We risk being submerged by the virus,” Health Minister Khalid Ait Taleb said Sunday. “So drastic measures are in order, otherwise the situation risks spinning out of control in coming days.”

With more than 1,000 confirmed cases a day since the start of August, Moroccan media have been critical of the handling of the health crisis.

The authorities blame the spread of Covid-19 in Morocco on people’s failure to adhere to health protocols.

The country of 35 million inhabitants has recorded more than 1,400 deaths from coronavirus and over 75,721 confirmed cases.


Flash floods kill 21 in Moroccan coastal town

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Flash floods kill 21 in Moroccan coastal town

RABAT: Flash-flooding caused by sudden, heavy rain killed at least 21 people in the Moroccan coastal town of Safi on Sunday, local authorities said.
Images on social media showed a torrent of muddy water sweeping cars and rubbish bins from the streets in Safi, which sits around 300 kilometers (186 miles) south of the capital Rabat.
At least 70 homes and businesses in the historic old city were flooded, authorities said.
Another 32 people were injured and taken to hospital, but most of them have been discharged.

Damage to roads cut off traffic along several routes to and from the port city on the Atlantic coast.
“It’s a black day,” resident Hamza Chdouani told AFP.
By evening, the water level had receded, leaving people to pick through a mud-sodden landscape to salvage belongings.
Another resident, Marouane Tamer, questioned why government trucks had not been dispatched to pump out the water.
As teams searched for other possible casualties, the weather service forecast more heavy rain on Tuesday across the country.
Severe weather and flooding are not uncommon in Morocco, which is struggling with a severe drought for the seventh consecutive year.
The General Directorate of Meteorology (DGM) said 2024 was Morocco’s hottest year on record, while registering an average rainfall deficit of -24.7 percent.
Moroccan autumns are typically marked by a gradual drop in temperatures, but climate change has affected weather patterns and made storms more intense because a warmer atmosphere holds more moisture and warmer seas can turbocharge the systems.