Shock and worry in Montreal's Moroccan community after deadly earthquake

In the nearly two days since a deadly earthquake killed more than 2,000 people in Morocco, Montreal's Café Amistad has become a gathering place for people seeking answers, or at least support.

As news of the deadly quake trickled in on Friday, Chorfi Zouhir kept his shop open late into the night, as customers stayed glued to news channels and tried frantically to call home.

"Everything was upside down," he said in an interview Sunday. "We were looking for information at any price."

Zouhir said many people spent the early hours trying to get through on the phone to relatives, desperate to know if they were OK. He said initially, the death toll was reported to be in the dozens, then the hundreds. By the time he woke up Saturday morning, "it was multiplying," he said.

His own family in Casablanca are safe, but he's shocked by the tragedy that struck his country.

He said he's also been deeply touched by how many people of all backgrounds have stopped by his café to ask their Moroccan neighbours if their families are safe.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau expressed his condolences to the people of Morocco in a social media post, and said Canada is ready to help however it can.

"My heart breaks for the people of Morocco, following yesterday’s devastating earthquake," he wrote Saturday on X, formerly Twitter. "To those who lost loved ones: Canadians are sending you our deepest condolences."

Residents flee their homes after an earthquake in Moulay Ibrahim village, near the epi centre of the earthquake, outside Marrakech, Morocco, Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023. A rare, powerful earthquake struck Morocco late Friday night, killing more than 800 people and damaging buildings from villages in the Atlas Mountains to the historic city of Marrakech. But the full toll was not known as rescuers struggled to get through boulder-strewn roads to the remote mountain villages hit hardest. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

At least one mosque in Montreal said it was collecting donations to send to Morocco, while multiple people on a Facebook page dedicated to Moroccan Montrealers posted online, asking how they could help.

There are roughly 100,000 Canadians of Moroccan decent, according to the latest census. About 81,000 Moroccan Canadians live in Quebec, and nearly half of that population is in Montreal.

More than 2,000 people died and more than 2,000 were confirmed injured after Morocco was shaken by a 6.8 magnitude earthquake that hit late Friday about 70 kilometers south of Marrakech.

Women cry as they mourn victims of the earthquake in Moulay Brahim in the province of Al Haouz, Morocco, Sunday Sept. 10, 2023. An aftershock rattled Moroccans on Sunday as they prayed for victims of the nation’s strongest earthquake in more than a century and toiled to rescue survivors while soldiers and workers brought water and supplies to desperate mountain villages in ruins. (Fernando Sanchez/Europa Press via AP)

On Sunday, the streets of the historic city were filled with police and army vehicles, according to a Newfoundland man who was attending a UNESCO conference in Marrakech when the quake hit.

John Norman, the mayor of Bonavista, N.L., said he was getting ready for bed on Friday when the room began to shake.

While it started slowly, he said the large jolts began within seconds.

"The ceiling began to move, and dust began to come down," he said in an interview. "The ceiling light fixtures in the bathroom fell out of the ceiling and I said, 'we're leaving.'"

Security forces take part in a rescue operation after an earthquake, in Moulay Ibrahim village, near Marrakech, Morocco, Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023. A rare, powerful earthquake struck Morocco late Friday night, killing more than 800 people and damaging buildings from villages in the Atlas Mountains to the historic city of Marrakech. But the full toll was not known as rescuers struggled to get through boulder-strewn roads to the remote mountain villages hit hardest. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

Norman said he was lucky that neither he nor other Canadian delegation members were hurt, and that their hotel is well-built and sustained only minor damage. However, he said it's painful to hear the stories from hotel staff whose families have lost homes, and to see priceless historic sites damaged or destroyed.

He's also aware that his own story could have ended in a different way. Originally, he was scheduled to conclude the conference with a field mission to the Atlas Mountains — near the epicentre of the tragedy — and to stay in a hotel that is now "no more," he said.

"We're all very lucky and we all realize it," he said.

People shelter in tents after their homes were damaged by the earthquake, in the town of Amizmiz, near Marrakech, Morocco, Sunday, Sept. 10, 2023. Towns and villages throughout Morocco's Atlas Mountains are mourning the dead and seeking aid after a record earthquake wreaked destruction throughout the region last week. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

He said the money for that expedition has been donated to earthquake relief, and that a donation centre has been set up outside the hotel where he's staying. Conference attendees and others staying in the less-damaged areas have also donated blood as well as bottled water, he said.

Global Affairs Canada said Saturday that it was not aware of any Canadian citizens injured or killed in the earthquake, and did not provide an update Sunday morning.  

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on Sept. 10, 2023.