Warrnambool woman on holiday in Morocco heartbroken by devastation

Kate Dancey is on a trip in Morocco, which was hit by a powerful earthquake on Friday, with her sister Jane Howie.

The two are on an Intrepid tour of the country to celebrate Mrs Dancey's 50^th birthday.

Mrs Dancey said it was heartbreaking to witness the devastation left by the earthquake.

"We started in Casablanca, through to Chefchaouen and the Sahara Desert, arriving in the Atlas Mountains when the earthquake hit," she said.

"The tremors were strong but thankfully we were in a solid hotel."

Mrs Dancey said the two had been driving through the Atlas Mountains for the past two days, unable to get to Marrakech.

"Many places are either full or not taking guests due to structural concerns," she said.

"We have seen many old kazbars (buildings) with signs of damage and large rocks on the roads and structural damage to houses.

"Some locals are sleeping outside."

Mrs Dancey said the small villages in the Atlas Mountains were the worst affected, with residents in desperate need of food and blankets.

She said the country was in mourning, shops were closed and school had been cancelled.

Mrs Dancey said many people were scared about what the future held.

"They have not witnessed an earthquake in their lifetime and a lot of the buildings are old," she said.

Despite this, they are incredibly friendly and welcoming, she said.

"We have needed to find emergency accommodation as the one we were supposed to stay in was damaged," Mrs Dancey said.

The 6.8 magnitude earthquake is the worst to hit the country in more than six decades.

The search for the missing continues in remote villages and the death toll of more than 2100 seems likely to rise further.

The damage done to Morocco's cultural heritage became more evident as local media reported the collapse of a historically important 12th century mosque. The quake also damaged parts of Marrakech old city, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

In Moulay Brahim, a village 40 km south of Marrakech, residents described how they dug the dead from the rubble using their bare hands.

On a hillside overlooking the village, residents buried a 45-year-old woman who had died along with her 18-year-old son, a woman sobbing loudly as the body was lowered into the grave.

As he retrieved possessions from his damaged home, Hussein Adnaie said he believed people were still buried in the rubble nearby.

"They didn't get the rescue they needed so they died. I rescued my children and I'm trying to get covers for them and anything to wear from the house," he said.

Later, sacks of food were unloaded from a truck which local official Mouhamad al-Hayyan said had been organised by the government and civil society organisations.

With many homes built of mud bricks and timber or cement and breeze blocks, structures crumbled easily. It was Morocco's deadliest quake since 1960 when a tremor was estimated to have killed at least 12,000 people.

In the badly hit village of Amizmiz, residents watched as rescuers used a mechanical digger on a collapsed house.

"They are looking for a man and his son. One of them might still be alive," said Hassan Halouch, a retired builder.

The team eventually recovered only bodies.

The army, mobilised to help the rescue effort, set up a camp with tents for the homeless.

The government said on Saturday it was taking urgent measures to address the disaster including reinforcing search and rescue teams, providing drinking water and distributing food, tents and blankets.

Morocco has declared three days of mourning and King Mohammed VI called for prayers for the dead to be held at mosques across the country.

The quake's epicentre was 72 km southwest of Marrakech, a city beloved of Moroccans and foreign tourists for its medieval mosques, palaces and seminaries richly adorned with vivid mosaic tiling amid a labyrinth of rose-hued alleyways.

Mrs Dancey urged people to dig deep and help the people left homeless and without food and shelter.

Donations can be made here.

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