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Publication director: Mohamed Khartouf
World

In Morocco, a heat wave kills twenty-one people

The General Directorate of Meteorology had announced a strong heat wave from Monday to Wednesday in several localities, with temperatures reaching up to 48°C. The country is facing its sixth consecutive year of drought.

You can share an article by clicking on the share icons at the top right of it. The total or partial reproduction of an article, without the prior written authorization of Le Monde, is strictly prohibited. For more information, consult our general conditions of sale. For any authorization request, contact syndication@lemonde.fr. As a subscriber, you can gift up to five items per month to one of your loved ones using the “Gift an Item” feature. https://www.lemonde.fr/afrique/article/2024/07/25/maroc-vingt-et-un-morts-apres-une-vague-de-chaleur_6257917_3212.html Twenty-one people died in twenty-four hours in Béni Mellal, a town in central Morocco, due to a new heat wave that hit the country, in the grip of its sixth consecutive year of drought, the Ministry of Health said on Thursday (July 25). The General Directorate of Meteorology (DGM) had announced a strong heat wave from Monday to Wednesday in several localities, with temperatures reaching up to 48°C, notably in Béni Mellal. “The majority of deaths concern people suffering from chronic illnesses and the elderly, the high temperatures having contributed to the deterioration of their state of health and led to their death,” said the regional health directorate. Morocco recorded heat records this winter, with the hottest month of January recorded in the kingdom since 1940 (nearly 37°C in places), according to the DGM. Rising temperatures threaten the agricultural sector, essential to the national economy, and dam reserves. Water evaporation has reached “one and a half million cubic meters per day,” Water Minister Nizar Baraka said at the end of June. The national maximum temperature record was recorded in August 2023 in Agadir (South), with 50.4°C. Climate change is causing longer, stronger and more frequent extreme weather events, such as heat waves and flooding.

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