Experiencing the Morocco Earthquake

jana meerman morocco earthquake marrakech damage (28)

At 11:11 on Friday 8 September, 2023, a 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck the High Atlas Mountains of Morocco, the impact of which was felt across the country.

I had landed in Marrakech earlier that afternoon with Emily, a friend of mine, for a weekend of exploring and relaxing in the capital. We had just gotten into bed in our riad, a beautiful boutique property just on the edge of the world famous historic Medina. I remember specifically the time it happened because at 11:10, I turned to Emily and said "Ooh, it's almost 11:11, get ready to make your wish!" and that's when the shaking began.

Our entire room began to shake. At first, we were confused - "is that an earthquake?" "Earthquakes aren't supposed to happen in Morocco." "Are we going to die?"

Emily wrapped her body around mine and began to pray. We lay in bed, being shaken, for what felt like an eternity. It was a few minutes long and as we watched the room around us shake, we noted that nothing was falling off the walls and the property seemed to be sound. For that, we will forever be grateful. This riad was a safe haven, suffering no damage in what would turn out to be the worst earthquake in Moroccan history.

When the shaking stopped, we threw some clothes on, grabbed our backpacks with our valuables and - going against all cultural guidance of covering our knees as we were just in our pajama shorts - we joined the other guests of our riad. The only impact we could visibly see in our riad was that the pool in the courtyard had overflowed, sloshing water all across the main floor. We left our riad to stand in the street with what felt like the entire city and, in the late hours of the night, there were hardly any updates or news coverage to tell us what was going on. We felt one initial aftershock about fifteen minutes after the initial quake. We stayed outside in the warm night air for two hours, with no guidance and no idea what to do next. Many people chose to spend the night, and subsequent nights, on the street, for fear of aftershocks.

With our riad having sustained the 6.8 magnitude earthquake with no damage, we decided for ourselves that, if it could withstand that, it would survive any further shocks, which would, hopefully, be less intense. Just after 2:00am, we returned to our room and tried to get some sleep, unsure of what had just happened, and without any true grasp of the tragedy that had unfolded in the night.

The next morning, after just a few hours of restless sleep, we woke to the news that the earthquake had killed more than 300 people across the country - with that number expected to rise drastically. We had a quiet breakfast in the riad. We forewent our touristy plans and decided instead to make our way into the Medina to see for ourselves the impact.

We very quickly realized we had been in one of the safest parts of town. Just steps from our front door, we began to witness the immediate aftermath of the quake. We were some of the very first people on the scene. The normally bustling Medina, full of people shouting to sell their wares and barter for goods, was unusually quiet. A sense of profoundness hung in the air. Entire walls had crumbled, cars were crushed under rubble. Balconies had fallen off their supports, goods were strewn across the floors of the shops we walked past. As locals began to show up and open up their shops, cries broke out when they realized how much of their livelihoods were gone. We made our way through the streets, some intact, and some buried under mounds of rubble and dust.

I spoke to locals, and photographed what I saw. Every photo below of a shop was taken with permission.

As we began to document what we were witnessing, it was clear that there was a gap in international news sharing on-the-ground updates. I posted what we were seeing to my Instagram stories, which very quickly were viewed thousands of times. My footage was quickly picked up by international news outlets from what felt like every country across the globe - from Brazil to Japan, USA to the UK, Australia to Hungary and most places in between, as people were desperate for updates and information. I captured what I could, focusing on the reality of what was going on on the ground. News agencies reached out to ask if they could use my videos for their news reports that day, as their reporters were unable to be on the ground until the Sunday morning.

I am heartbroken at what I have lived through - but I also witnessed a profound sense of community and resilience. My heart is with the Moroccans who have a long road ahead of recovery and rebuilding, many of whom who have lost their homes and their loved ones. I am grateful I could feel of use in some way by bringing this story to the international news’ attention, as surivor's guilt and helplessness wracked through me.

I was intending to spend just shy of three weeks in Morocco, exploring the whole country. I felt that in the immediate aftermath, as people were struggling to rebuild their lives, many having lost loved ones and homes, that a touristy trip around the country was inappropriate. Having lived through this experience with them, I wanted the focus to be on those affected in the mountain villages beyond Marrakech where the destruction and casualties were the highest.

As such, I left Morocco early. I plan to come back as soon as I can. Many Moroccans rely on tourism as their sole source of income and a tragedy such as this should not deter those from coming to visit this incredible nation.

A disclaimer - my footage was used extensively for international news coverage of this event, which was beneficial for shedding light on the reality of what had occured and I felt I used my platform and my global reach for good. However, I declined multiple international interview requests as I did not feel my voice - as a foreign tourist - was the right one to be used for such an event.

You can provide support to those on the ground affected by the earthquake in Morocco here.

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Jana Meerman

Hi! I’m Jana, a British-Dutch-Canadian with a dream of seeing every country in the world. I am a storyteller, photographer and adventurer passionate about documenting and sharing my travels.

Find me on: Instagram | Facebook

1 Comment

Laurel Ennis
14 October 2023 / 8:27 am

Wow, Jana. Talk about being in the right place at the right time for getting your pictures out there. I’m so glad you and your friend weren’t hurt. I have a fondness for Moroccans thanks to a Moroccan friend’s mother who took to me and I to her although we didn’t speak any language in common, we communicated profoundly and I wonder about her to this day. She lived in Casablanca, but probably died years ago as she was quite old when I knew her. It must have been heart rending to see such ruin come to such nice people. Thank your for documenting it so honorably.