On friday night, panic gripped the historic city of Marrakesh in Morocco after a devastating earthquake hit and kills at least 820 people as of now, after BBC News reported death toll of 632 people on Saturday morning.
The epicenter was in the High Atlas Mountains, 71km (44 miles) southwest of Marrakesh, at a depth of 18.5km, the US Geological Survey said.
The earthquake occurred at 23:11 on Friday. There was a 4.9 aftershock 19 minutes later.
People died in Marrakesh and several southern regions, the ministry said. Most of the victims are believed to be in remote areas.
The interior ministry was quoted by the BBC as saying that the earthquake killed people in the provinces and municipalities of al-Haous, Marrakesh, Ouarzazate, Azilal, Chichaoua and Taroudant, adding that at least 329 people were injured but as of now the injured stands at 672.
Unverified video clips on social media show destroyed buildings, other buildings shaking and streets littered with rubble. People are seen running away in fear.
Some buildings in the old city have collapsed, a resident told Reuters news agency. Several clips on X show buildings collapsing, but the BBC has not identified where they were.
Residents are said to have decided to stay out of their homes in case the city is rocked by future aftershocks.
Another man in the historic city described feeling a “strong tremor” and seeing “buildings moving”.
“All the people were in shock and fear. Children were crying and parents in distraught,” Abdelhak El Amrani told AFP.
