At least 19 killed in building collapse in Morocco

At least 19 people were killed and 16 injured as two buildings collapased in Morocco's Fes city according to the state news agency.

The incident which occured early on Wednesday involved two adjacent four-storey residential buildings in the Al Mostaqbal Al Massira neighbourhood in the Zouagha district of Fes. 

Local media reports that residents and volunteers were first responders at the scene where they helped pull a child out of the rubble before specialised teams arrived. 

Other injured who were also pulled out of the rubble are said to be receiving treatment at Hassan II University Hospital.

Authorities say search and rescue teams including security services and civil protection units are currently at the scene with an unknown number of people stil trapped under the debris.

The collapsed buildings housed four families in Fes, one of Morocco's oldest and third most populous cities.

According to Reuters, the state news website SNRT reported that "the scene indicates that the two collapsed buildings had been showing signs of cracking for some time, without any effective preventive measures being taken."

However, this has not been independently verified by Reuters. 

Local media say that residents in various neighbourhoods in Fez city have repeatedly warned about weakened structures and delayed renovation programs.

A Gen Z protest  erupted in major cities in Morocco including Fez, Rabat and Agadir as young people called for reforms in healthcare, education, and anti-corruption efforts. 

The October protests in which three people were shot and over four hundred arrested, also saw the youth caling for Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch to step down. 

This incident comes after another building collapse in a Fez neighbourhood earlier in the year.

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