Algarve mayors forced to sleep on streets due to Morocco earthquake

Three mayors from the Algarve, who were on a work trip to Marrakech, were sleeping on the streets due to the earthquake that hit Morocco late Friday.

“We were drinking water in the garden near the hotel and I was very scared by the force and noise caused by the earthquake. For about half a minute I felt the ground shaking. I moved away from anything that could fall on me and waited,” Mayor Loule told Lusa news agency this morning.

Vítor Aleixo spoke with the presidents of the municipalities of Albufeira, José Carlos Rolo and Silves Rosa Cristina Palma, when they felt the effects of the earthquake, which reached a magnitude of 7.0 on the Richter scale and occurred in the city of Isis, located about 80 kilometers southwest of Marrakech in 23:11, at a depth of eight kilometers.

“We had just finished dinner and were meeting informally outside the hotel when there was a loud noise and bang that lasted 15-20 seconds,” Albufeira’s mayor told Lusa.

Hotel guests were allowed to go to their rooms for a few minutes before returning to the outdoor garden to sleep, the two mayors said.

Vitor Aleixo said he tried to sleep sitting in a chair with his legs stretched out on another chair, fearing the aftershocks from the initial earthquake.

“Those who had a sun lounger, of course, slept better,” commented the mayor.

For his part, Jose Carlos Rolo sat in a chair, saying that he could not sleep all night with the sound of ambulances passing along the street.

The mayors noted that the hotel “may have cracks in the walls, but the building appears to be undamaged,” in contrast to what happened in the historic and central part of Marrakech, where they had not yet been. Municipal officials, accompanied by three technical specialists from the respective municipalities, are trying to speed up their return to the Algarve, which was originally scheduled for Tuesday.

Participants at the 10th International Conference on UNESCO Global Geoparks are expected to hold a final meeting at lunchtime today, with all of them indicating that the originally planned program has been cancelled.

This conference is held every two years and brings together people from around the world to share the latest discoveries and experiences on a wide range of topics, including geology, sustainable tourism, education or co-management for sustainable development.

The three mayors were in Marrakech to promote the project to establish the Algarvensis Loulé-Silves-Albufeira Geopark as a UNESCO World Geopark.

The latest death toll from the earthquake that hit Morocco on Friday evening has risen to 1,037 dead and more than 1,200 injured, according to the Moroccan Interior Ministry. A strong earthquake was felt in Portugal and Spain.