Name: At least 37 dead after flash floods hit Morocco’s Safi
Uploaded: 2025-12-16T05:09:21.129Z
Duration: 1 min 32 s
Description: Morocco grapples with the deadliest flooding disaster in more than a decade after fierce storms and rain sweep across a coastal town.

Morocco grapples with the deadliest flooding disaster in more than a decade after fierce storms and rain sweep across a coastal town.

Safi

Flash floods triggered by intense rainfall have caused significant devastation in Safi, a city on Morocco’s Atlantic coast. The floods resulted in at least 37 deaths, with low-lying neighborhoods, especially the historic Bab al-Shaba district, particularly affected. Streets were left filled with mud and debris, and many residents were trapped as buildings collapsed.

Prime Minister Aziz al-Khanout reported that the city’s drainage systems were overwhelmed, leaving little time for residents to escape. Schools have been closed for several days, and Morocco’s prosecutor has launched an investigation to determine if negligence contributed to the disaster. The floods come after seven consecutive years of drought in the region.

At least 37 dead after flash floods hit Morocco’s Safi

A city overwhelmed in minutes. Mud-filled streets, overturned vehicles and shattered storefronts in Asfi, on Morocco's Atlantic coast, after intense rainfall triggered deadly flash floods. People drowned and suffered, and there were those whose shops collapsed on top of them and the sewage was all blocked. Local officials say dozens were killed when floodwaters swept through low-lying neighborhoods, particularly the historic Bab al-Shaba district. Prime Minister Aziz al-Khanout told Parliament that torrential rain overwhelmed drainage systems and left residents with little chance to escape. The flooding began at 4.30pm. We wonder why no trucks came to pump out the water. We know that this is a disaster that we accept as coming from God, but where are those responsible? Schools have been closed for several days as residents struggle to clean streets clogged with mud and debris. Today is a dark day for the city of Asfi. We are mourning more than 20 deaths. Morocco's prosecutor has opened an investigation to determine whether negligence played a role in the scale of the disaster. The floods come after seven consecutive years of drought in a country increasingly exposed to extreme weather. Ali Hashim, Al Jazeera.

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