Morocco Evacuates 50,000 People As flooding Threatens City

Morocco has evacuated more than 50,000 people, nearly half the population of the northwestern city of Ksar el-Kebir, as flooding driven by weeks of heavy rain threatened to inundate the city, state media said on Monday.

"The city has become a ghost town," local resident Hicham Ajttou told Reuters by phone. "All markets and shops are closed and most residents have either left voluntarily



or been evacuated."

Authorities set up shelters and temporary camps and barred entry into Ksar el-Kebir as rising water levels in the Loukkos River spread across several neighbourhoods. 

Only departures from the city were permitted, while electricity was cut in parts of it and schools were ordered to remain closed until Saturday.