Today, February 6, in the morning in southern Turkey and northern Syria there was a powerful earthquake of magnitude 7.8. More than 1,300 people were killed, and search and rescue operation is still ongoing. This was reported by the Associated Press.
Thus, the U.S. Geological Survey reported that the epicenter of the earthquake was about 33 kilometers from the city of Gaziantep in southern Turkey and about 90 kilometers from the Syrian border. Its center was at a depth of 18 kilometers.
At least 20 tremors followed, hours later during daylight hours, the strongest of which was magnitude 6.6, Turkish authorities said.
According to the publication, buildings shook in the Syrian capital Damascus. In addition, the earthquake pushed residents of the country of Lebanon out of bed, many residents of Beirut (the capital of Lebanon) left their homes and took to the streets or drove their cars away from buildings.
It is reported that the buildings collapsed on a cross-border strip stretching from the Syrian cities of Aleppo and Hama to the Turkish Diyarbakir, more than 330 kilometers to the northeast. In the Turkish provinces of Gaziantep and Kahramanmaras, almost 900 buildings were destroyed, said Vice President Fuat Oktay. According to him, a hospital collapsed in the Mediterranean coastal city of Iskenderun, but there is no information about the victims.
It is noted that the earthquake severely damaged the most famous monument of the Turkish city of Gaziantep, its historical castle, located on the top of a hill in the center of the city. Parts of the walls of the fortress and watchtowers were razed to the ground, and other parts were badly damaged, according to images from the city.
In Turkey, people trying to leave the earthquake-hit regions caused traffic jams, preventing ambulance teams from reaching the affected areas. Authorities urged residents not to take to the roads.
Turkey sits atop large rifts and is often subject to earthquakes. About 18,000 people were killed in the powerful earthquakes that struck northwestern Turkey in 1999.
The publication notes, more than 900 people were killed in 10 Turkish provinces, with more than 5,400 injured, according to Turkey’s president.
The death toll in government-held areas of Syria climbed over 330 people, with some 1,000 injured, according to the Health Ministry.
In rebel-held areas, more than 200 people were killed, according to the White Helmets, though the SAMS medical organization put the toll at more than 135; both said hundreds were hurt.
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