Rabat – A week following the Fez tragedy, Morocco experienced another nightmare, another devastating tragedy after torrential rainfalls swept away many people, taking away their houses, their belongings in and their lives or those of their loved ones in Safi.
The death toll of the tragic and heartbreaking floods reached at least 37 to date, with many still receiving medical care at local health facilities.
An investigation is ongoing to determine the circumstances of this heartbreaking event, with converging news indicating that the provincial authorities in Safi held an emergency meeting to review the city’s overall situation.
Photos and footage from the devastating scene show how the infrastructure of a whole city, according to its marginalized citizens, is fragile, an easy prey to untold destruction and devastation in the event of a natural disaster.
As usual, the government was frustratingly absent and unresponsive in the crucial early hours of the disaster. In those critical hours, only generic statements and communiques about the death toll and local authorities’ efforts were available to concerned Moroccans who rushed to social media to understand what was happening.
Speaking at a parliamentary session on Monday, Head of Government Aziz Akhannouch extended the government’s condolences to people affected by the floods.
He attributed the situation to “fate” and heavy rainfall that affected the region in a short time period.
“It is the fate that rainfall of 30 millimeters affected the region of Safi in a short period of time, 37 millimeters to be precise, affecting the historical Bab Chaaba market, in which a river traverses,” he said.
Using comparisons in similar cases to bring up how this country or that other reacts in similar circumstances – is irrelevant. For one thing, that debate is already ongoing across the country; if not by the media – by the people – those affected and those watching the situation through their small and large screens.
Social media is powerful enough to document the situation, especially as main media usually just copy and paste whatever official accounts share. In this context, platforms like Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, and Instagram provide a hub for those who don’t know to stay informed of the situation.
Of course, many would share fake news and circulate rumors whenever it is possible – why? In the absence of official communication, press briefings, and live ground assessments, accounts from all sorts and all kinds of people, whether accurate or not, become the “news.”
As the common saying states, “One man’s misfortune is another man’s opportunity.”
So far, the situation in Safi and the whole country remains dark, not because of the weather – but because of the heartbreaking floods. People on-site and online are extending condolences and praying for those who lost their families.
Viral videos show civil protection increasing efforts to help people, makeshift boats are patrolling the spot to rescue people and residents are all over the place helping people to rescue those affected.
Meanwhile, criticism and condemnations are pouring in – with citizens emphasizing how officials should shoulder responsibility to acknowledge their failure to honor their duties to the affected city and families.
Moroccans are also sending clear messages, emphasizing that the rainfall is not responsible for the situation, but the fragile infrastructure in the devastated city.
A look into infrastructure projects
While an investigation is ongoing to determine the profound causes of this tragedy, let us explore data from the Ministry of Logistics on the projects completed, being carried, or scheduled to be carried out to improve infrastructure in Safi.
Charts examining infrastructure projects in the city show mixed records, varying between completed, delayed, and still-planned projects.
The Ministry of Logistics shared charts detailing projects for 2020.
According to these figures, maintenance and adaptation projects covered a total of 81 kilometers, with an estimated budget of MAD 147.17 million.
What raises concern, however, is that only one project was fully completed, and that’s according to the ministry’s own data. That project has to do with the widening and reinforcement of the “RR202 between PK2+000 and PK17+000,” spanning 15 kilometers, at a cost of MAD 33.8 million.
Unless the figures suffer from a five-year delay in updating the public on the actual progress made to address these projects, this remains the sole finalized project within the reviewed official data provided by the concerned ministry itself.
Another major project — the reinforcement of the “RR206 from PK39+000 to PK67+400 over 28 kilometers — was still in progress at the time, with an advancement rate of just 10%, despite a significant budget allocation of MAD 48 million.
Following up on whether these projects were completed is not easy, as local authorities’ websites are either outdated or simply do not exist.
More concerning is the fact that a large portion of the planned works had not begun at all.
Projects totaling 38 kilometers remained at a 0% advancement rate in 2020, according to the ministry.
In parallel, additional infrastructure works were listed as “programmed projects,” indicating future intentions rather than completed or ongoing action. These include the reinforcement of the RP2322 connecting Ighoud and Sidi Chiker over 22 kilometers, with a projected cost of MAD 30 million, and the widening and reinforcement of the RN11 between PK145 and PK162.651, covering 17.65 kilometers at an estimated cost of MAD 52 million.
Altogether, these programmed projects represent more than 39 kilometers of roads and MAD 82 million in planned spending. Taken together, these figures unmistakably underscore how much of Safi’s infrastructure reinforcement remained pending, even years after the risks were known.
In 2023, Morocco’s Ministry of Equipment and the Marrakech-Safi regional council announced signing a MAD 3 billion ($303 million) partnership to boost infrastructure in the Marrakech-Safi region.
The deal was reported to cover the development and rehabilitation and is set to span four years from 2023 to 2027.
And the agreement was said to include the expansion and refurbishment of 484.5 kilometers of roads. The report also noted that this collaboration would see a significant contribution of MAD 1.4 billion ($141.4 million) from the ministry, complemented by an additional MAD 1.6 billion (MAD 161.6 million) from the region.
More recently, this past November, reports announced the inauguration and launch of infrastructure projects, with an estimated budget of MAD 21 million to improve traffic flow. One of the other projects inaugurated was also a project to build a national road linking Safi to the entrance of the Safi El Jadida motorway with an investment of MAD 67 million.
Great news… But is this enough? Are these projects covering rural and the interior areas? Are they enough to shield the city from similar incidents?
Indeed, this compilation of incomplete, missing official data leaves us with all the W and H questions journalism requires to understand where the issue lies.
Who: Who is really responsible?
Why: Why are there no updates on these projects, and why did the flooding have to claim at least 37 lives?
Where: Where are the officials, and why is there no on-the-ground to communicate and reassure? Where are the necessary press briefings supposed to provide updates in a responsible, heart-to-heart manner to show that the authorities are genuinely concerned and care? And here, we are not speaking of local authorities and civil protection members using their arms, legs, and hearts to save people on the ground.
How: How are you going to fix this in the future, especially when similar tragic incidents have already taken place — remember, for instance, the tragedy of the football pitch built in a location where a river passes.
While enjoying a football match, Tizert villagers in the Taroudant province suddenly found themselves swept away by a flash flood in 2019, when heavy rainfall hit the region. The resulting floods caused widespread human and material damage.
And here is a … for a “to be continued.” Not because one chooses pessimism, but because one cares about the country and wants it to be 100% at all levels — not only in sports and celebrations, but also in civil rights and human dignity.
In such a case, journalists have to point fingers, ask questions, and raise doubts about visibly incomplete official accounts. Not because they choose pessimism, but because they care about the country and want it to be 100% functional at all levels — not only in sports and celebrations, but also in civil rights and human dignity.
Information should not be sought in the dark, but rather offered and answered by those whose job is to provide updates and reassure when such disasters hit. Only then can journalists provide thorough, accurate, and responsible reporting — especially when lives are lost, and accountability is at stake.
We cannot continue to blame fate or bad fortune when it is the undeserved and remote areas, where people feel abandoned and excluded from national priorities, that are systematically the site of these recurring untold tragedies.
