Midelt : villages cut off by snow drifts and the inhabitants denounce the situation

The Drâa-Tafilalet region, situated in the Atlas Mountains, is still experiencing rare yet heavy snowfall. Last week, Yabiladi shed light on how the inhabitants of Zagora and Ouerzazate, two provinces belonging to the same region, dealt with the unexpected bad weather, and especially the snow. Now, it is Midelt, another province in the Western region that is suffering from snow. Several small villages located near the town have been cut off by snow drifts.

One of the villages affected is Boumia, a town in the Midelt province, said Said Ahbar, a coordinator of the Boumia community network and member of the Moroccan Association for Human Rights (AMDH). «In Boumia, we are suffering from the consequences of the heavy snow. Shelters have been opened for the homeless and pregnant women were told to join hospitals but with such conditions we find ourselves faced with the fait accompli», Ahbar told Yabiladi on Wednesday.

Everything is stagnating in the province. Based on the account of the AMDH activist, schools and roads were closed due to the heavy snow. «All schools in the rural area of the Midelt province have been closed», he said insisting that «the government and the public authorities have to intervene more effectively in the province, because the logistical needs are to be considered».

According to the local activist, the inhabitants of the area are also struggling with the cold weather, trying to provide heating alternatives. «The purchasing power of the population is very low that even buying wood and bushes to heat is becoming impossible», he said adding that it costs up to 120 dh to buy a quintal (1 quinal = 100 kg) of wood.

Collapsed houses

Itzer, a village located 18 kilometers away from Boumia, has also been affected by the bad weather conditions hitting the province. There, «a woman actually died after her coal house collapsed», said the same source.

«When it snows, the inhabitants manually clear the roofs of their homes to avoid these kinds of accidents. She had done it, but her ceiling was already damaged», added Ahbar who informed Yabiladi that the AMDH and the local associations organized on Tuesday a sit-in in the village to protest against this unacceptable situation.

The same situation was described by Hamid Ait Youssef, vice-president of the AMDH regional office in Draa Tafilalet who indicated that the heavy snow caused damages in several villages in the province. «Six houses collapsed in Bousmella, a village in the Midelt province, while another one is on the verge of coming apart», Ait Youssef told Yabiladi.

And to stress Ahbar’s account, Ait Youssef said that «schools are closed in all the rural areas of the province, especially where teachers and students have to commute».

«However, other villages are definitely cut off and there is little visibility for what the authorities will do for the citizens. They are not reacting to the situation, and no measures have been taken to fight against the cold and bad weather», concluded the activist present on site.

Weather forecasting suggests that the snow is to last till the end of the current week. Meanwhile, King Mohammed VI gave his instructions to the concerned governmental sectors and services to remain mobilized and redouble efforts to alleviate the negative impact of snowfall, heavy rains and sharp drop in temperatures in some prefectures and provinces of the Kingdom, and to take steps to open up the affected areas and provide assistance and support to their populations, the Ministry of Interior said Wednesday in a statement.