Hopes of finding more survivors of Morocco's devastating earthquake were fading on Tuesday, four days after more than 2,800 people were killed, most of them in remote villages. Meanwhile, aid agencies are struggling to reach the thousands in need of basic essentials.
Search-and-rescue teams on Tuesday continued to dig through the rubble of broken mud-brick homes, hoping for signs of life in a race against time following the 6.8-magnitude quake late Friday.
Overall, at least 2,862 people have died and more than 2,500 have been injured in the tragedy, according to an official toll issued late Monday.
Morocco has allowed rescue teams to come to its aid from Spain, Britain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates but so far declined offers from several other nations, including France, the United States and Israel.
Albert Vasquez, the Spanish unit's communications officer, warned on Monday that "it's very difficult to find people alive after three days" but stressed that "hope is still there".
Searching by hand
The need is most desperate in remote and poor villages in the Atlas mountains, only reachable via winding dirt roads, where inhabitants have searched by hand for missing relatives.
Many of the region's traditional adobe homes have crumbled to rubble and dust, with residents salvaging mattresses, blankets and cooking utensils from them.
Antonio Nogales, President of the Spanish NGO Bomberos Unidos Sin Fronteras told RFI on Tuesday that it took workers nine hours to reach a remote place called Imin Talaa.
"We were the first rescuers to reach the site," he said, adding that the "level of destruction is almost total, all the houses are destroyed".
"And there are towns scattered across the region with two to three homes which have been unable to contact the outside world".
Children suffering
The United Nations estimated that more than 300,000 people have been affected, one third of them children, by the powerful seismic event that hit just after 11 pm on Friday when most families were asleep.
"Thousands of homes have been destroyed, displacing families and exposing them to the elements at a time of year when temperatures drop down during the nighttime," the UN children's agency said.
"Schools, hospitals and other medical and educational facilities have been damaged or destroyed by the quakes, further impacting children."
Meanwhile, the Red Cross has appealed for more than $100 million to cope with the humanitarian emergency.
"We are seeking 100 million Swiss francs ($112 million) to be able to deliver on the most pressing needs at this time, which include health, water, sanitation and hygiene, shelter relief items and basic needs," Caroline Holt, global director of operations at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, told reporters in Geneva.
Compensation
Many Moroccan citizens have rushed to help quake victims with food, water, blankets and other aid or by donating blood to help treat the injured, an effort echoed by the national football team.
But the deadly quake has put a heavy burden on the North African kingdom's emergency resources and some stranded in shattered communities were angry and shocked over what they say is a lack of a major influx of aid.
The interior ministry issued a statement Monday outlining how the government is helping victims of the disaster.
"Authorities are proceeding with their efforts to rescue, evacuate and care for the injured and mobilise all necessary means," the ministry said.
Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch chaired a meeting on Monday on housing and reconstruction and then promised that "citizens who have lost their homes will receive compensation," adding that the details would be announced later.
(with newswires)
