Earthquake in Morocco: An Intimate Tragedy Meets Timeless Resiliency

Rabat – It has been two weeks since the devastating 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck Morocco’s High Atlas Mountains. The epicenter was 70 kilometers (44 miles) from Marrakesh, the popular tourist destination and UNESCO world heritage site renowned for its colorful nightlife, vivid ocher colors and important Islamic architecture. While the tragedy has faded from the headlines (particularly following the massive floods in Derna, Libya several days after the Morocco earthquake), the resilience of a nation and region are noteworthy.

While Marrakech suffered relatively light damage in its old medina, villages and towns surrounding Marrakech — particularly those to the southwest — suffered significant damage. The quake has killed about 3,000 people and left tens of thousands homeless. But those who are familiar with the region and the people know that the tight bonds between people, families and communities in the area create a strong foundation from which to rebuild lives and villages.

Many of the residents affected by the earthquake are indigenous peoples of north Africa — the Amazigh, or Imazighen, (formerly Berber). More than one-third of Morocco’s population are Amazigh in origin. This indigenous population has an impressive history. The Amazigh endured great change during the Arab migrations to the Maghreb region (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Mauritania) which began in the seventh century. Amazigh culture remained through extensive human interaction (intermarriage, for example), European colonialism and the spread of Islam across the region.

Great contributions to Arab, Amazigh and Islamic history occurred in the region following the seventh century.
The Amazigh played a leading role during Islamic empires that stretched across north Africa and into Iberian Peninsula (al Andalusia), particularly in the 11th Century. Fourteenth century Moroccan explorer Ibn Batutta created a vast travelogue of his extensive travels. Middle East historians still revisit his writings.

While recovery efforts following the September earthquake will continue for months and years, Moroccan leaders will face challenges over how to rebuild and maintain communities that are remote and that are also facing demographic challenges (youth migration to larger cities, for example). The king of Morocco (Mohammad VI) made a donation of roughly one hundred million dollars for earthquake relief and resettlement efforts. The quake response has generated a genuine wave of national unity. North or south, most Moroccans will know someone personally affected by the quake.

Extended families in the region are close and the challenges of one family, for example, are often the shared cause of many more neighbors. The locals utilize a mix of agriculture, small-scale textile manufacturing and tourism for income — all wrapped in a fierce self-reliance and commitment to family. Those resources will rebound quickly.

While the remote nature of many of the Atlas villages in the quake zone makes for deep cultural pride and close-knit communities but it also makes recovery efforts challenging when a natural disaster such as this occurs. Single lane roads high in the mountains are easily blocked by dislodged boulders and landslides. As local media have noted, the role of donkeys—always a crucial transportation and resupply resource in the Atlas—has now become indispensable.

As others have noted since the tragedy, Morocco is a modern nation with resources to aid in the recovery — airlift, field hospitals, etc. Modernity can be seen across Morocco — from the high-speed train service from Tanger to Casablanca to automobile assembly plants. The Al Haouz region at the epicenter of the earthquake will indeed rely on the Moroccan national response and some international aid but much of the long-term recovery will rely on the shared commitment and sacrifices of neighbors and extended family. As it has always been.