Over 2,400 people were killed on Monday by the most violent earthquake to hit Turkey and Syria in a century, which also spurred frantic rescue efforts and was felt as far away as Greenland.
Massive portions of major Turkish cities were completely destroyed by the 7.8-magnitude early morning earthquake, which was followed by dozens of aftershocks in a region where millions of people have fled the civil war in Syria and other crises.Rescuers peeled up debris with heavy machinery and their bare hands in search of survivors, some of whom they could hear pleading for assistance beneath the rubble.
Melisa Salman, a reporter in the Turkish city of Kahramanmaras, remarked, "Since I live in an earthquake zone, I am used to being shook.However, the 23-year-old told AFP, "That was the first time we had ever encountered something like that." We believed it to be the end of the world.Raed Ahmed, the director of Syria's National Earthquake Center, referred to it as "the strongest earthquake recorded in the centre's history."
State media and medical sources claimed at least 810 deaths in Syria's rebel and government-controlled regions, and Turkish officials added 1,498 more.
The epicentre of the earthquake was located about 50 kilometres (31 miles) from the northwest Syrian border, where 1.7 million Syrians who have been internally displaced reside in a number of camps under the control of opposition groups that are still engaged in fighting Bashar al-government.
The region is home to a number of sizable, government-controlled cities, including Aleppo, which has a dense population of around two million people.More than 50 aftershocks, including tremors of 7.5 and 6 magnitude, were felt in the area on Monday afternoon as search and rescue operations were in progress.
V Muraleedharan, the Union Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs, paid a visit to the Turkish embassy and sent his sympathies to Ambassador Firat Sunel for the losses and damage brought on by the three earthquakes. According to the White House, two 79-person search and rescue teams are being sent by the United States to help Turkish authorities deal with the earthquake that killed over 2,400 people in both Turkey and Syria.
According to the US Geological Survey, the first earthquake of magnitude 7.8 happened in southern Turkey close to Syria's northern border around 04:17 local time (01:17 GMT) on Monday (USGS). The earthquake, which caused considerable mortality and extensive property damage, occurred at a shallow depth of 18 km (11 miles). A magnitude 6.7 aftershock occurred 11 minutes after the initial earthquake. According to the USGS, shallow strike-slip faulting caused the magnitude 7.8 earthquake.
The Dead Sea transform fault zone or the East Anatolian fault zone appeared to be connected to the earthquake. The US agency said that three earthquakes of magnitude 6 or greater had occurred in this region since 1970, indicating that the area where this earthquake occurred is seismically active. On January 24, 2020, the greatest one with a magnitude of 6.7 occurred. These earthquakes all occurred around or along the East Anatolian fault.
Heartbreaking images from Syria following the 7.8 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes that struck earlier today. Over 2,000 people have been confirmed dead because of the quakes. #syria #turkey #earthquake pic.twitter.com/8H7T4KHpuV
— WeatherNation (@WeatherNation) February 6, 2023
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