Government sets up hotline for Catalans with families in Morocco following deadly earthquake
Over 1,000 deads recorded, and 1,200 injured after Friday's quake
The Catalan government set up two emergency hotlines for Catalans with families in Morocco following a deadly earthquake registered on Friday at 11:10 pm. The quake with a magnitude of 6.9 on the Richter scale was recorded in the southern-west area of Marrakesh.
Over 1,000 people died, and 1,200 are injured, as the Moroccan interior ministry released on Saturday morning.
The Catalan government is reuniting information on those who may have been affected by the earthquake and recommends following authorities and the emergency team's guidelines.
"We are paying attention to the aftermath of the earthquake and are in touch with the authorities," the Catalan foreign affairs ministry said. "Any affected person can contact the Catalan government via the Northern Africa delegation."
An information point and emergency hotlines are in place for those Catalans with families in Morocco. One of them is a WhatsApp instant messaging service line (+34 674 744 901), and the second option is a Moroccan phone number +212 648 682 896. Later on Saturday, authorities updated the phone numbers, adding a third hotline in Catalan for those who are based in Catalonia and need to get in touch. +34 38 597 393.
The Catalan president, Pere Aragonès, shared his condolences with those families who have loved their loved ones —a similar message to the one issued by Spanish acting PM Pedro Sánchez.
So far, Spanish authorities do not have any information about any Spaniard among the victims.
Catalans enjoying holidays feel earthquake
The earthquake was also felt by many Catalans traveling to Marrakesh, as they shared on social media X, previously known as Twitter. Joan Bilbao posted several videos of the aftermath of the quake from one of the most famous cities in the country.
Bilbao was having dinner, and as he told the Catalan public 3/24 news channel, he remained on the streets until 4:00 am.
Other Catalans, such as journalist Antònia Crespí, from the Catalan Ara newspaper, said, "You do not know what is happening," as she told Rac1 radio station on Saturday morning.
Catalan authorities set up aid committee
The Catalan humanitarian and emergency aid committee will meet on Wednesday afternoon to assist in all the immediate needs Morroco may need after the earthquake, as the Catalan foreign affairs minister, Meritxell Serret, said on Saturday.
The same committee had already convened in the past when the war in Ukraine started and the earthquake in Turkey and Syria killed thousands.