Floods in Morocco Kill at Least 24 at Illegal Factory

RABAT, Morocco — At least 24 people died in a flooded house that was being used as a clandestine textile factory after torrential rains on Monday in the northern Moroccan city of Tangier, the Moroccan interior ministry said in a statement.

The victims, most of whom were women, were trapped in the basement of the house, in a residential neighborhood of the city, the ministry said. At least 10 people were rescued from the house and a search was ongoing for more survivors, it added. The state-run network 2M put the death toll at 28, citing police sources.

Photos and videos of heavy rains, and the dead bodies of men and women being taken out of the house, were widely circulated on social media, sparking outrage online. Some witnesses told local news sites that some of the victims had been electrocuted, but there was no official confirmation of that.

The interior ministry said it was investigating.

The owner of the factory hasn’t been identified but according to local news reports, he was on the scene at the time of the disaster and is currently under medical supervision.