Steph Deschamps / Judy 26, 2024
Twenty-one people have died in 24 hours in a town in central Morocco, due to a new heat wave that has hit the country, which is suffering its sixth consecutive year of drought, the Ministry of Health announced on Thursday.
The Directorate General of Meteorology (DGM) had announced a severe heat wave from Monday to Wednesday in several localities, with temperatures reaching up to 48°C, notably in Beni Mellal.
“The majority of deaths involved people suffering from chronic illnesses and the elderly, as the high temperatures contributed to the deterioration in their state of health and led to their deaths,” said the regional health authority in a statement.
The national record for maximum temperature was set in August 2023 in Agadir (south) at 50.4°C.