The strongest Earthquake in nearly a century rocked Turkey and Syria early Monday, killing over 1,200 people while they slept, leveling houses, and triggering vibrations felt as far away as Iraq. According to the US Geological Survey, another 7.5-magnitude earthquake struck southeast Turkey this evening (USGS).
The number of people killed in the second earthquake is still unknown. The first 7.8-magnitude earthquake ripped away significant areas of major Turkish cities in a restless region teeming with millions of refugees fleeing Syria’s civil war and other crises.
The chairman of Syria’s National Earthquake Centre, Raed Ahmed, told pro-government media that this was “the greatest earthquake recorded in the history of the center”.
According to the most recent tally, at least 326 individuals were killed in government-controlled areas of Syria.
According to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, at least 912 people perished in Turkey.
Shocked survivors in Turkey raced out into the snow-covered streets in their pyjamas, watching rescuers dig with their hands through the debris of wrecked homes.
“Seven members of my family are under the debris,” Muhittin Orakci, a bewildered survivor in Diyarbakir, Turkey’s predominantly Kurdish city, told AFP.
“My sister and her three children have joined us. Her husband, father-in-law, and mother-in-law are also present.”
A winter blizzard buried main routes in ice and snow, complicating the rescue. Officials said the quake rendered three main airports in the vicinity inoperable, hampering the delivery of critical aid.
India and other countries are delivering relief after a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck Turkey and Syria earlier in the day, killing over 1,300 people and injuring hundreds more. The death toll continues to rise.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached out to Turkey, a quake-hit country. “India stands in sympathy with the people of Turkey and is ready to offer all possible assistance in dealing with this tragedy,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said. The administration has agreed to send rescue, medical, and relief teams.
The quake occurred around 04:17 a.m. (0117 GMT) at a depth of about 17.9 kilometers (11 miles) in the Turkish city of Gaziantep, which has a population of about two million people, according to the US Geological Survey.
The quake’s magnitude was revised from 7.4 to 7.7 by Turkey’s AFAD emergency service center.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who will be under enormous pressure to oversee an effective reaction to the accident as the country prepares for a closely contested election on May 14, expressed his sympathies and advocated national togetherness.
