CGTN – Dozens killed, hundreds injured after powerful quake hits Türkiye
At least 42 people were killed and more than 200 others injured in Aleppo, Hama and Latakia regions as a result of the earthquake that hit Türkiye on Monday, according to Syrian state media.
The death toll in Türkiye has climbed to 43 and over 400 people were injured in the quake.
NYTimes ISTANBUL — Millions of people in Turkey, Syria, Lebanon and Israel were jolted from their beds early Monday after a deadly earthquake hit the region, collapsing buildings and raising the specter of a humanitarian crisis. At least 80 deaths were reported in Turkey and Syria and the toll was expected to increase.
The epicenter of the earthquake was near the city of Gaziantep in south central Turkey. The magnitude 7.8 earthquake hit at 4:17 a.m., according to the United States Geological Survey. It was followed by aftershocks, one as strong as magnitude 6.7. Videos shared on social media from the area and across the border in Syria showed destroyed buildings and rescue crews searching through piles of rubble for survivors.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey said that search and rescue teams had been dispatched to the areas affected by the earthquake. The country also sought international assistance for the rescue efforts.
“We hope that we will get through this disaster together as soon as possible,” Mr. Erdogan said on Twitter.
Turkish authorities put the magnitude of the earthquake at 7.4, saying the epicenter was Pazarcik, in Kahramanmaras province. It had a depth of 7 kilometers, or 4.3 miles, and was felt in eight provinces across Turkey.
Residential buildings in the Gaziantep area are mostly made of brick and brittle concrete and are extremely vulnerable to shaking caused by earthquakes, according to the U.S.G.S. Significant casualties were likely and there may be hundreds of fatalities, the agency said.
In addition to its local population, Gaziantep hosts many of the millions of Syrian refugees in Turkey and is the site of one of the largest operations run by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
Earthquakes occur frequently in Turkey, which is crisscrossed by fault lines. Recent quakes in the region have caused landslides that have contributed to deaths.
