Nesreen Abu ElFadel, a devoted schoolteacher from Morocco, has shared her agonizing experience following the cataclysmic 6.8-magnitude earthquake that struck the country on September 8.
The earthquake, considered the most powerful ever recorded in Moroccan history, resulted in nearly 3,000 fatalities and left a trail of destruction in its wake. Notably, the most severely affected areas were situated south of Marrakesh, including Adaseel, a mountain village that was home to ElFadel's school and its pupils.
"I went to the village and started asking about my kids: 'Where is Somaya? Where is Youssef? Where is this girl? Where is that boy?' The answer came hours later: 'They are all dead,'" ElFadel told BBC News.
She discovered that all 32 of her students - who were aged six to 12 years old - had all died in the disaster.
"I imagined holding my class's attendance sheet and putting a line through one student's name after another, until I had scratched off 32 names; they are all now dead," she continued.
Among the tragic tales that emerged from the rubble was that of six-year-old Khadija, who was found dead next to her siblings Mohamed, Mena, and Hanan. "Khadija was my favorite. She was very nice, smart, active, and loved to sing. She used to come to my house, and I loved studying and talking to her," the devastated teacher said.
ElFadel reminisced about the unparalleled enthusiasm her students had for learning, despite grappling with poverty and the escalating cost-of-living crisis. Fondly referring to her students as "angels", she revealed how they were taught Arabic and French, adding multilingual proficiency to their Amazigh (Tamazight-speaking) backgrounds.
"Our last class was on Friday night, exactly five hours before the quake hit," ElFadel stated. "We were learning Morocco's national anthem, and planned to sing it in front of the whole school on Monday morning."
As a testament to the disaster's far-reaching consequences, official statements revealed that a staggering 530 educational institutions suffered damage of varying degrees. In response, the Moroccan government has temporarily suspended classes in the hardest-hit areas, leaving the educational aspirations of countless children in limbo.
Despite grappling with immense emotional trauma and insomnia, ElFadel says she will continue teaching. "Maybe one day when they rebuild the school and classes are back in session, we can commemorate those 32 kids and tell their story," she said.
If you would like to help those impacted by the Morocco earthquake, please consider donating to causes like The British Red Cross.
Our thoughts continue to go out to everybody impacted by this tragedy.
