Colombo (News 1st) – UPDATE: Over 1,000 people are now known to have died in the massive 6.8 magnitude earthquake that rocked Morocco on Friday night, international media reported.

Morocco's Interior Ministry said 1,037 are known to have died and over 500 injured. The death toll is expected to rise further as hundreds of the injured are critical and more bodies are being pulled from the rubble. The Moroccan Army joined in the rescue effort and countries as far away as the UK, India and the U.S. offered emergency assistance.

The quake's epicenter was in the Atlas Mountains, 75 km from the city of Marrakesh. The tremor toppled buildings and sent millions scrambling out of their homes in the darkness. The ancient city walls of Marrakesh suffered significant damage.

The tremor occurred at 11:11 pm Morocco time when most people were asleep. The US Geological Survey said that the quake's epicenter was at a depth of 18.5 km.

This is not an area known for massive quakes. It is the largest earthquake ever recorded in Morocco, a country in North Africa that borders the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea just south of Spain.

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