Team News Riveting
Istanbul, February 6
At least 2000 people died Monday in Türkiye when three major earthquakes and 145 aftershocks struck the southeast of the country in last 24 hours on Monday.
Over 2000 people were killed and 9,733 others were injured following the earthquakes, which were felt in 11 provinces. The magnitude 7.7 quake struck 7 kilometers (4.3 miles) below the surface in Kahramanmara on February 6 at 4:17 am, according to Türkiye’s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD). After multiple large and small tremors, another 7.6-magnitude earthquake occurred in Kahramanmara at 1:26 pm.
Many buildings damaged in the first major earthquake collapsed by the impact of the second major earthquake. A hospital in Hatay skenderun district collapsed due to the earthquake, while runways at airports in Hatay and Adana were severely damaged and flights were immediately halted.
Gaziantep and Kahramanmara provinces were also closed to civil flights, while Turkish Airlines (THY) announced that it scheduled additional flights to the earthquake zone. As a result of the damage to the natural gas transmission line in Gaziantep, the natural gas flow was also stopped in Gaziantep, Hatay and Kahramanmara provinces.
Education Minister Mahmut Özer announced that education has been suspended for two weeks in preschools and primary, secondary and high schools in the provinces of Kahramanmara, Hatay, Adyaman and Malatya.
All sports competitions and events have been suspended across the country.
Türkiye lies in one of the world’s most active earthquake zones. The 7.4 magnitude Düzce earthquake in 1999 was one of the worst in the history of Türkiye in decades.
Meanwhile, at least 783 people were killed Monday across Syria following the earthquake.
The Syrian health ministry said the death toll rose to “1,284 injured and 403 dead in the provinces of Aleppo, Latakia, Hama, Tartus” – all government-controlled areas.
The White Helmets rescue group that operates in rebel-held areas of the war-torn country said “the death toll from the earthquake in northwestern Syria has risen to more than 380 and more than 1,000 injured”.
