RABAT, Morocco (AP) — Flash floods caused by a storm in northern Morocco killed at least four people as the country struggled with days of heavy rain and water releases from overfilled dams that forced mass evacuations, local authorities said Sunday.

Three children — a girl and two boys aged 2 to 14 — and a man in his 30s died in a car that was swept away in a village near Tétouan, about 270 kilometers (168 miles) north of the capital Rabat, according to a statement from the Interior Ministry citing local authorities. Another person remains missing.

Local authorities said they will open an investigation into what happened.

READ MORE: Why flash floods are the nation's top storm-related cause of death

The flash floods were caused by a storm system known as Marta, which moved into Morocco over the weekend and dumped up to 92 millimeters (3.6 inches) of rain on some northern cities, Houssine Youabed of Morocco's General Directorate of Meteorology told The Associated Press. Storm Marta also reached neighboring Spain and Portugal.

Days earlier, another storm, Leonardo, hit northern Africa and the Iberian peninsula. In Morocco, it overfilled dams and rivers, damaging homes and crops, triggering minor landslides and forcing more than 150,000 people to evacuate.

The turbulent weather has also secured at least a year's supply of drinking water for Morocco and boosted resources for the country's critical agricultural sector, officials said, providing relief after a yearslong drought.

Support trusted journalism and civil dialogue.

Left: A drone view of a flooded area, after heavy rainfall raised water levels in the region, in Ksar El Kebir, Morocco, in this screengrab from a handout video obtained on February 6, 2026. File photo by the Royal Moroccan Gendarmerie/Handout via Reuters

By Noah Berger, Trân Nguyễn, Associated Press

By Munir Ahmed, Sheikh Saaliq, Associated Press

By John O'Connor, Associated Press

Associated Press Associated Press

Subscribe to Here's the Deal, our politics newsletter for analysis you won't find anywhere else.

Thank you. Please check your inbox to confirm.

© 1996 - 2026 NewsHour Productions LLC. All Rights Reserved.

PBS is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization.

Subscribe to Here's the Deal with Lisa Desjardins

Thank you. Please check your inbox to confirm.

Support for News Hour Provided By