RABAT, Morocco (AP) – Torrential rainfall has flooded an illegal clothing factory in the northern Moroccan city of Tangier, killing at least 28 workers Monday, state television said.
That raised the death toll from 24, Moroccan news agency MAP reported earlier.
Local authorities said firefighters and emergency workers rescued 10 people from the factory in the basement of a residential villa. Rescue workers searched for others who may have been trapped in the flash flood.
The total number of workers on the site was not immediately known. An investigation was opened.
A shocked unknown woman who emerged from the flooded basement told TanjaNews, a local site, that no one was prepared for the deadly flood.
‘There was nothing to worry about. We worked as usual, ”the woman said. And then because it was raining, as you can see … the water started to come in, a little bit of water, not even my shoes got wet. But suddenly… ”She couldn’t finish her sentence.
To meet growing international demand, countless factories in Morocco, especially in Casablanca and Tangier, rely on unregulated shadow factories to speed up production and meet deadlines. Factories outsource such illegal units to better compete with cheaper Chinese and Turkish products.
Such hidden factories are mainly located in residential areas and often employ up to 40 people, sometimes minors.
Long working days and low wages are characteristic of such illegal work, usually in unsafe conditions, without fire extinguishers, emergency exits and internal pipes.