Earthquake Update and How to Help

 Update on 14 Sept at 6 pm GMT 

An earthquake action update from The BRITISH MOROCCAN SOCIETY-  a summary of amazing achievements so far:

1. They are using associations who are very efficient at volume distribution sending trucks deep into the affected area eg a thousand blankets supplied yesterday.

2.Distributing directly to villages where we have longstanding relationships. This involves a lot of research and coordination and the villagers are typically walking round trips of eight hours or more to meet us.

3. Their motorbike team have had good successes taking small quantities of the most critical items into forward areas. Now they need picks and shovels so that the survivors can start to clear roads by hand.

4. A water filtration engineer has joined our team, bringing four professional filtration systems installed in a substantial field kitchen that is being built in Ouirgane

5. Sourcing supplies is critical at this stage. Key items like power banks, torches, tents and tarpaulins are sold out in Marrakech. We are grateful to Sophie Martin, the British Ambassadors wife who with a group of other ambassadors’ wives scoured Rabat to buy a van load of precious items now being distributed. Encouraged by your support we have the scale and ambition to look seriously at sourcing products internationally. We have been working hard on that and there are some promising things in development.

6. A personal note: as a result of a request that came via a who Holidays with Heart last night the BMA have already found an association that will connect them to the supplies needed. Fantastic service!

In this context we are raising our immediate fundraising target to £250,000. Together we are making a very real difference, so please continue to help by sharing this fund raiser as widely as you possibly can.

NEW HOMES

Stage 1 –  Tents We connected with Emma Joyston Bechal, a British lady who lives in Morocco, who is experienced in making tents; she and her team will within 2 weeks receives lots of tent fabric (currently unavailable in Morocco). The tents will be essential as the winter draws in.

Stage 2 – Repair or Rebuilding homes  King Mohamed VI has announced that generous grants will be available to people who have suffered damage to or lost their homes.

ANOTHER FUNDRAISER -THIS TIME IN TAROUDANT AREA 
The Taroudant Rotary Club are doing some stirling voluntary work. Their fundraiser is here

LATEST NEWS  Update on 13 Sept at 6 pm GMT 

Rescue efforts are making remarkable progress. We have accommodated free of charge a group of doctors from Medecins Sans Frontieres from yesterday. They say they won’t be with us long because they are really impressed with the progress already achieved by the Moroccan Army doctors. Apparently there are ample supplies of food, clothing, blankets, tents, medicines etc being delivered to the people in need.

Our minds now turn to the medium to long term needs. We would very much like to help in the villages where we have come to know and love so many residents. Once we identify community needs we would love to help directly. 

THANK YOU! We want first of all to thank so many of our contacts for their heartfelt supportive messages. We much appreciate your concern.

The earthquake is a tragedy on a scale we could not have imagined.

There are parts of the High Atlas Mountains where the damage is horrific. It’s feel too distressing to post images of the damage to some of the mountain villages so we have chosen to post this image of Sunday Market in Taroudant where you normally see so many people from the High Atlas.

We get news daily via our many contacts of the last 30 years and so we will update this page and our guests as relevant news unfolds.

WE ARE SAFE AND WELL – AND OPEN FOR GUESTS Thankfully our team at the Ecolodge and the people known to past visitors are safe and our buildings are undamaged so we can continue to welcome guests because the airports are operating normally and the road connections to Agadir airport (and Marrakech via the motorway) are operational. Water, food, electricity and internet are all available.

BACKGROUND As a geologist who has had an interest in the High Atlas Mountains for the last 30 years I want firstly to assure you that the massive earthquake (6.8 on the Richter Scale) that struck a remote mountainous area 40 miles SW of Marrakech is an event that you’d certainly not expect to be repeated – the stress that had clearly built up there for some time has been released and the aftershocks seem to have subsided now. The last major earthquake in this region was 123 years ago. The causes of loss of life are the shallow depth resulting in more energy passing to the ground surface and the fact that it occurred late at night when most people were asleep or at least indoors. Most major earthquakes occur far away in the north close to the Mediterranean, a well known area of major seismic activity. 

However there are many inaccessible villages (all the more so with landslides blocking the roads) where the damage is generally much greater due to steeper slopes and old buildings, hence the extent of collapsed buildings and loss of life is far worse, and of course there is a search going on for survivors beneath the rubble. Then there are the longer term consequences to consider……..

HOW CAN YOU HELP?

Emergency help is needed for people and animals right now. There is also a need for more long term help.

1. 1. BY MAKING DONATIONS If you like to and are able to help financially we suggest these three charities all of which are eligible for Gift Aid from the UK (if you give £100 the charity receives £125):

Moroccan Children’s Trust (MCT) & British Moroccan Society (BMS) & Jarjeer Mules.

The Moroccan Children’s Trust are based in Taroudant and they do an incredible job supporting the local children in need.

MCT write: “it isn’t only about water and essential supplies but also the costs in the medium and long term of offering targeted social work support to those who will migrate from the decimated nearby mountain villages to the town of Taroudant. We will take their referrals, especially of abandoned children, if we have the funding that will be needed.” To make a Gift Aided Donation to Moroccan Children’s Trust follow this link

The British Moroccan Society has worked for decades with local associations across Morocco with a particular focus on the Atlas Mountains in the Al Haouz region where the epicentre of the earthquake was located near Marrakech. As the tragic situation unfolds the BMS is working closely with their partner associations to quickly get funds to places they are most needed. To make a Gift Aided Donation to British Moroccan Society follow this link

Jarjeer Mules Starting in 2014 Jarjeer has strived to create a sanctuary for the working equines in Morocco. They have growing support nationally and internationally and have been able to create homes for equines from all corners of the Morocco. They are currently using their trucks to not only transport animals in need to their sanctuary but also to deliver supplies to people and animals in need in the mountains.  These animals will be so important to the mountain economies in future. To make a Gift Aided Donation to Jarjeer Mules follow this link

We and the charities really appreciate your support.

2. BY VISITING MOROCCO Most places are unaffected and because Morocco’s economy relies so heavily on tourism you can rest assured that your visit will be appreciated. It is extremely unlikely that another large earthquake will hit this region. This is supported by historical and archaeological records which insurance companies base their premiums on. It is rated as a very low risk area, especially now that the pressure has been released on that fault line. And you’ll learn how well Moroccans deal with adversity, something for which I admire them greatly.

We will update both this page and our guests as relevant news unfol

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