Morocco: Rainfalls Take Over Roads, Houses, Shops in Northern Provinces

Rabat – Heavy rainfall in Morocco’s northern provinces is expected to continue until 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday and could reach up to 110 mm in some towns.

Rain that began at 1:00 p.m, on Monday in the north of the country has already damaged some houses, shops, and public infrastructure.

The heavy showers are expected to last until mid-afternoon on Tuesday in Chefchaouen, Fahs-Anjara, Tetouan, Mdiq-Fnideq, Driouch, and Nador, the Ministry of Equipment and Water said on the same day.

Al Hoceima, Berkane, and Gursif are predicted to record between 30 mm and 60 mm of rainfall.

Strong winds are also battering parts of the country, added the ministry,

Winds between 70 km/h and 90 km/h were recorded in Fahs-Anjara, Tangier-Asilah, Tetouan, Mdiq-Fnideq, Nador, Al Hoceima, and Figuig.

They are set to last until 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday.

Sidi Bennour, Ben Slimane, Settat, El Jadida, Berrechid, Nouaceur, Casablanca, Mediouna, Mohammedia, Asfi, Temara, Skhirat, Sale, Rabat, Kenitra, and Ouarzazate have also witnessed strong winds (70-90 km/h) on Tuesday between 9 a.m. to 11 p.m, added the ministry.

Caused Damage

The strong rainfalls blocked nation road 2 connecting Tetouan and Chefchaouen along with other regional roads, disrupting the mobility of people and goods.

Rainfalls flooded houses and shops in Tetouan, Chefchaouen, and other cities and suburbs, according to local media outlets and visual content shared by local communities on social media.

A local media outlet reported that 11 cars were pushed along by strong water in Tetouan, where the rainfall impacted more than 200 houses.

Some images circulated on social media showed house entrances covered with soil carried out by the strong water.

Rainfalls Take Over Roads (Viral picture)

While the financial damage is yet to be calculated, local authorities did not report any human injuries or losses.

Bright Side?

But the heavy rainfall has helped to fill dams in the Tangier-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region following droughts in the country in the first few months of the year.

The General Directorate of Water on Monday said that the region’s dams are now around half full.

The Mediterranean Tanger dam in Fahs-Anjra is 90% full.

Other dams in the region are less full including the April 9 dam which is only around 16% fully and Ibn Battouta dam which is 30% full.

The latest rainfalls have restored hope for the 2021-2022 agricultural campaign, said Government Spokesperson Mustapha Baitas on March 31.

A month earlier, Bank Al-Maghrib called for the creation of a state investment fund to alleviate the impact of the drought season on the country’s economy. The bank added that Morocco faces the worst drought recorded in more than 30 years.

The recent precipitation is expected to help reverse the effects of this drought.

“We cannot reach the bumper harvest of last year, but this year’s harvest will be important,” explained Baitas.