A Marrakech trader in his shop after the earthquake. Credit: Le Desk The ocher city seems to be at a standstill, the few tourists and residents still alone from the day before are observing the damage caused by the violent earthquake which left 1,037 victims and several thousand injured (at the time of writing these lines (From our special correspondent in Marrakech) Broom and shovel in hand, the traders of Jmaa El Fna square try to clean up the post-earthquake debris. “Some buildings and mosques were completely razed after the tremors, fortunately we close early , around 8 p.m., otherwise we wouldn’t even be here anymore,” confides Brahim, a carpet seller whose store is barely holding on. Brahim was able to save his merchandise, but preferred to condemn for the moment the upper floor whose walls present several deep fractures. The glasses, plates and decorative pottery objects in the dozen store were almost all destroyed. “I was at home at the time of the earthquake, I knew in advance that my merchandise was not going to hold up shock (…) we can’t do anything, I consider myself lucky to still be alive,” he confides to us with a controlled throat. The premises of the Bentabaa craftsmen’s association are inaccessible, part of the wall has collapsed, blocking entry and exit from the premises. “There were four of us people still working at the time of the incident, we quickly went out into the small alley, but in front of us another wall began to give way, we ran until we found refuge in a small square,” recalls Badr with a broom in his hand, time to clear a path to the room. Other more cramped streets were condemned by falling stones. Residents have been evacuated and are still awaiting instructions from the authorities before returning to their homes. The earthquake, estimated at 6.8 on the Richter scale, left 1,037 dead and 1,204 injured, including 721 seriously, according to an updated report from the Ministry of the Interior, released at 2 p.m. Saturday. ©️ Copyright Pulse Media. All rights reserved. Reproduction and distribution prohibited (photocopies, intranet, web, messaging, newsletters, monitoring tools) without written authorization