1,900 killed were killed in powerful earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria earlier on Monday. With toppled buildings & hundreds trapped toll expected to rise as rescue work is underway, AP reported.
Death toll due to devastating earthquakes in Turkey and Syria rises to 1,900.
“Notable quake, preliminary info: M 7.5 – 4 km SSE of Ekinozu, Turkey,” USGS said in a tweet. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan described the 7.8 magnitude quakes as the country’s “biggest disaster” since 1939. He said that 912 people had been killed, with 5,383 wounded, according to Anadolu Agency.
Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) said the 7.7 magnitude quake struck at 4.17 a.m. (0117GMT) and was centred in the Pazarcik district in the southern province of Kahramanmaras. The quake occurred at a depth of 7 kilometres (4.3 miles).
AFAD said in a statement that 78 aftershocks occurred following the earthquake.
Gaziantep, Sanliurfa, Diyarbakir, Adana, Adiyaman, Malatya, Osmaniye, Hatay, and Kilis provinces are heavily affected by the quake, as per Anadolu Agency.
“The number of people rescued from the rubbles has reached 2,470. The number of buildings that collapsed is 2,818,” Erdogan said.
Vice President Fuat Oktay said at a news conference that Erdogan has been taking up the updates and reviewing the relief efforts since the moment of the earthquake.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the world leaders to condole the loss of lives caused by the massive temblor in Turkey and Syria on Monday.
