Massive Earthquake in Turkey 7.8 Magnitude Earthquake Claims More Than 3800 Lives
Following a magnitude 7.8 earthquake and several powerful aftershocks that struck the area on Monday, more than 3,800 fatalities were recorded in Turkey and Syria.
Over 3,800 people died in Turkey and Syria as a result of the earthquake that hit southern Turkey early on Monday morning. There were still hundreds of people trapped in the rubble as of Tuesday morning local time, prompting frantic rescue operations. One of the biggest earthquakes to hit Turkey in a century, it wreaked havoc in numerous cities and destroyed approximately 5,600 buildings. Search efforts are being made by locals and rescue personnel to find survivors among the rubble.
The earthquake occurred 20 miles east-southeast of the Turkish city of Gaziantep, which has a population of over a million people and a depth of 17.9 kilometers (11 miles). On Monday afternoon, an aftershock of magnitude 7.5 occurred 2.5 miles south-southeast of Ekinözü, Turkey, at a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles).
Ten minutes after the initial 7.8 magnitude earthquake, a 6.7 magnitude aftershock was registered. A second earthquake of 5.6 magnitudes was felt close to Nurdagi, a town of approximately 12,000 people that is 16 miles west of the site of the 7.8 quakes. The first earthquake was followed by at least 120 aftershocks, including one with a magnitude of 7.5.
Millions of refugees from the Syrian civil war lived in makeshift houses along the Turkish-Syrian border region. In an interview with pro-government radio, Raed Ahmed, the director of Syria's National Earthquake Centre, stated that the earthquake was the biggest ever recorded at the facility.
Aid has been promised from various countries and organizations including the European Union, NATO, United States, Japan, Great Britain, Gulf states, Russia, Iran, and others.