The Directorate General of Meteorology warned that a strong heat wave will sweep across Morocco beginning Saturday and lasting until Tuesday, issuing an orange-level alert because of the intensity and spread of the hot weather.
Across morocco, temperatures are expected to reach between 37°C and 44°C in many parts of the country, with very high readings of 41°C to 44°C forecast for southern and southeastern provinces including Laayoune, Dakhla, Smara, Assa-Zag, Boujdour, Oued Ed-Dahab, Aousserd, Tarfaya, Tan-Tan, Taroudant and Tata.
Many inland and central areas should see temperatures of 37°C to 41°C, with Marrakech, Fez, Meknes, Kenitra, Khouribga, Settat, Beni Mellal, Khenifra and El Kelaa des Sraghna specifically named among the zones likely to reach those levels.
Coastal cities will be cooler but still hot by seasonal standards: Casablanca, Mohammedia, El Jadida, Safi and Essaouira are expected to record highs from 34°C to 37°C while morning and nighttime fog is likely along northern and central coastal areas.
The authority also forecast local thunderstorms beginning Saturday over the Atlas Mountains, the Rif, the Saiss region and parts of the eastern high plateaus, and warned that some of those storms might extend toward western areas and the phosphate plateaus.
Wind conditions are expected to strengthen in several regions, with the weather service flagging Tangier and the southern provinces as particularly exposed; officials said the stronger winds may lift local dust in affected areas.
Temperature trends in the bulletin outline a rise that continues into Monday, with the highest values expected again on that day, before a gradual drop begins on Wednesday across most regions and cooler, more stable conditions return midweek.
This forecast follows several days of intense temperatures that have already affected large parts of the country, and the orange-level alert reflects both the peak readings and their geographic reach from the southern deserts to central inland plains.
The forecast creates an immediate tension between the heat and the convective activity: the same bulletin that predicts 41°C–44°C in the south and southeast also warns of local storms in mountain and plateau zones, and of winds strong enough to raise dust along exposed corridors. That overlap—high daytime temperatures combined with thunderstorms and gusty winds—introduces uncertainty about local impacts even as the national picture is a clear heat episode.
The single most consequential unanswered question sharpened by the meteorology service’s outlook is whether the stronger winds and the storms forecast for mountainous and eastern areas will extend into western zones and phosphate plateaus at the same time temperatures peak on Monday, amplifying hazards before the anticipated cooling begins Wednesday.
Until that pattern resolves, the Directorate General of Meteorology’s orange alert serves as a prompt to authorities and communities across the named provinces to prepare for several days of high heat, gusty winds and isolated storms before conditions moderate midweek.
