Tourists and others posted videos of people screaming and evacuating restaurants in the city as throbbing club music played.

Rabat: A powerful earthquake struck Morocco late Friday night, killing hundreds of people and damaging buildings and historic landmarks in major cities. The Moroccan Interior Ministry said the death toll in a massive earthquake rose to 820, with at least 672 injured, mostly in Marrakech and five provinces near the quake’s epicenter. He said that casualty figures were expected to rise more as the search continues and as rescuers reach remote areas.

The US Geological Survey said the quake had a preliminary magnitude of 6.8 when it hit at 11:11pm, with shaking that lasted several seconds. Morocco’s National Seismic Monitoring and Alert Network measured it at 7 on the Richter scale. The US agency reported a magnitude-4.9 aftershock hit 19 minutes later.

The epicenter of Friday’s tremor was high in the Atlas Mountains roughly 70 kilometers (43.5 miles) south of Marrakech. It was also near Toubkal, the highest peak in North Africa and Oukaimeden, a popular Moroccan ski resort.

Moroccans posted videos showing buildings reduced to rubble and dust, and parts of the famous red walls that surround the old city in Marrakech, a UNESCO World Heritage site, damaged. Tourists and others posted videos of people screaming and evacuating restaurants in the city as throbbing club music played.

WATCH Morocco earthquake building collapse video 

🚨 #BREAKING | #Morocco | #earthquake | #Marrakech |#الزلزال | #المغرب

The moment a building completely collapsed following the earthquake that struck Morocco a short while ago. pic.twitter.com/9n22NfiC8F

— Bot News (@BotNews18) September 9, 2023

PM Modi reacts

Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled the deaths due to the earthquake and expressed grief. Taking to microblogging site X ( formerly Twitter) he wrote, “Extremely pained by the loss of lives due to an earthquake in Morocco. In this tragic hour, my thoughts are with the people of Morocco. Condolences to those who have lost their loved ones. May the injured recover at the earliest. India is ready to offer all possible assistance to Morocco in this difficult time.”

Extremely pained by the loss of lives due to an earthquake in Morocco. In this tragic hour, my thoughts are with the people of Morocco. Condolences to those who have lost their loved ones. May the injured recover at the earliest. India is ready to offer all possible assistance to…

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 9, 2023

Morocco experiences frequent earthquakes in its northern region due to its position between the African and Eurasian plates. In 2004, at least 628 people were killed and 926 injured when a quake hit Al Hoceima in northeastern Morocco.

The 1980, 7.3-magnitude El Asnam earthquake in neighbouring Algeria was one of the largest and most destructive earthquakes in recent history. It killed 2,500 people and left at least 300,000 homeless.