A new earthquake in Turkey: at least three dead and hundreds injured – fears of a tsunami

according to BBCBecause of the new tremors, new buildings collapsed, while more and more wounded and trapped were reported. The world is terrified AFAD called its inhabitants Hatay Do not go near the coasts because there is a risk of sea level rise and you will encounter them tsunami!

The Turkish Disaster Management Agency (AFAD) reported that today’s new earthquakes were centered in the Defne community and left behind. Three dead and 213 wounded It is also the most Modern report Of the new strong earthquakes that occurred on Monday night in Hatay and Samandağ. A woman died there, when a stone fell on her head, during the 5.8 Richter earthquake, which occurred at 19.07 (Greek time, 20.07 Turkish time), as announced by the Minister of Interior, Suleiman Soylu. After the earthquake in Hatay, there was a cloud of dust from the debris, and the sounds of ambulances were also heard.

The new strong earthquake is centered in the southern province of Hatay, one of the areas affected by the devastating earthquakes of February 6, located 14 kilometers southeast of Antioch and 70 kilometers north of Latakia in Syria. The focal depth of the earthquake was measured at 10 km.

At the same time, the vice-president of Turkey spoke of the hundreds of wounded, Fuad Oktay. AFP correspondents said the earthquake was felt in the northwestern Syrian city of Aleppo as panicked residents rushed out of their homes into the street. A photojournalist said he saw the walls of buildings damaged by the February 6 earthquake fall away.

in Antioch, The earthquake also caused panic among the population. In a square, Ali Mazloum, an 18-year-old Syrian, said he was with disaster and emergency management rescue workers searching for the bodies of his relatives when the earthquake struck. “It took us by surprise, we didn’t know what to do. We clung to each other and in front of us the walls started to collapse. We had the impression that the earth was going to open from the middle and swallow us.”

A short distance away, a bulldozer was trying to clear rubble from a street. “That plane went down over there,” said one of the rescuers, pointing to what was left of a building. Ali Mazloum, who has been living in Antioch for 12 years, is still searching for the body of his sister and her family. Turkish authorities halted rescue operations in all other provinces except Kahramanmaraş and Hatay, after hopes of finding survivors faded 15 days after the earthquake.

Tangible seismic vibrations in Cyprus too

Meanwhile, the Department of Geological Survey of the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment Cyprus It was announced that on Monday, February 20, 2023 at 19:04 local time, an earthquake with a seismic magnitude Mw = 6.4 was recorded by the Department’s Seismological Network.

The earthquake, which had its epicenter in the Antioch region, was felt throughout Cyprus by the population. This phenomenon is ongoing and is being monitored by the Seismological Center of the Geological Survey Department.

Information about trapped in the ruins

according to ReutersThe mayor of Hatay province said he was receiving reports of people trapped under the rubble. At the same time, the states of Mersin and Antalya called on citizens in their statement to stay away from the sea coasts due to the dangers of rising sea levels after the earthquakes that struck Hatay.

Witnesses told Reuters that reports of damage to buildings in Antioch and others felt the earthquake in Syria, Egypt and Lebanon. According to Reuters, rescue teams in the areas affected by the February 6 earthquake are checking whether the new earthquake has caused more damage in the affected areas. TV network NTV I reported that there were dramatic appeals from the population for help.

Turkey’s Disaster Management Agency (AFAD) said aftershocks measuring 5.8 magnitude followed shortly after it hit the city of Samandag in Hatay province. According to the Disaster and Emergency Management Agency, this earthquake had a focal depth of 7 kilometers, and the Turkish authorities recorded more than 6,000 aftershocks.

Muna al-Omar, a resident of Antioch, said that at the time of the earthquake she was in a tent set up in a city park. “I thought the ground would open up under my feet,” she said, sobbing as she held her 7-year-old son in her arms. “Will there be another aftershock?” question.

“Keep away from damaged buildings.”

Reports from the area speak of the collapse of buildings damaged in the first earthquakes, while dust covered the area. Witnesses told Reuters that damage to buildings was reported in Antakya, and the Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Authority issued a statement warning residents not to enter damaged buildings.

Do not enter damaged buildings in the area. Don’t stay around dangerous buildings. Check with official sources for accurate information. journalist Bush DefferinWhich at the time of the earthquake was broadcast live CNN TurkHe said that the stoves in the tents erected by the previous strike Enceladus fell. “People even came out of their tents. They were afraid of falling trees,” Defferin said.

Tsunami warning from EMSC

The Euro-Mediterranean Seismological Center (EMSC) has issued a tsunami warning in the wake of the 6.4 and 5.8 magnitude earthquakes in Hatay, Turkey. He also reported on his radio SKAI 100.3 o.o Earthquake world Gerasimos Papadopoulospossibly dependencies.

The warning calls on citizens not to approach the coasts due to the danger of sea level rise and facing them with a tsunami!

According to the Disaster and Emergency Management Agency, more than 6,000 aftershocks have been recorded since the February 6 earthquake measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale shook southeastern Turkey and northwest Syria.

Horror in Kahramanmaras as well

This is the ninth strong earthquake to hit the region in the last 68 hours. Seismologists warned from the very beginning that strong earthquakes would occur in the Kahramanmaras region.

According to the Euro-Mediterranean Institute, the earthquake measured 6.3 on the Richter scale and occurred at 19:04 (Greece time, 20:04 Turkish time). The epicenter was located 9 kilometers southeast of Antioch in Turkey and 75 kilometers from Latakia in Syria. The focal depth of the earthquake is 2 km.

eyewitnesses said Reuters that damage to buildings was reported in Antioch and elsewhere that the seismic tremor was felt in Syria, Egypt and Lebanon, but also in Cyprus.

“The earth has slipped under us.”

his journalist CNN Turkey In Hatay, he described the earthquake with tears. “There was an incredible earthquake. We were in the camp. The people here were very afraid. The ground slipped under us. Everyone was thrown out of their tents. The stoves were overturned. Precautions were taken for a possible fire. We fell to the ground.”

The second earthquake measured 5.8 on the Richter scale

A little later at 20:07, there was a second large earthquake with a magnitude of 5.8 on the Richter scale at Samadag in Antakya again.

Meanwhile, Turkey decided, on Sunday (20/2), 14 days after the February 6 earthquake, to stop search and rescue operations, with the exception of the most affected provinces of Kahramanmaras and Hatay, the Turkish Disaster Agency announced.

More than 46,000 people died in the earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria on February 6.

according to Euro-Mediterranean institute The shaking was volume 6.2 on the Richter scalewith a focal depth of 2 km.

The death toll is expected to rise exponentially as it is now known that some 345,000 apartments were destroyed in the country and many people are still missing.

However, the automated solution It states that the earthquake was strong 6,4 Richter scale degrees.

In addition to the Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey Fuad Oktay He stated that 105,000 buildings had collapsed or suffered major damage and would be demolished.

The head of Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Agency, Yunus Sezer, said the search and rescue effort would largely come to an end this evening. “No one is alive,” said Mucddet Erdogan, a member of the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority. “I don’t think we can save people anymore.” A team from Kyrgyzstan tried to rescue a Syrian family of five from the rubble of a building in Antakya, southern Turkey.

Millions of people need help

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that around 26 million people in Turkey and Syria need humanitarian assistance. The US Secretary of State is expected to arrive in Turkey today to discuss ways Washington can assist Ankara in its efforts to deal with the repercussions of the worst natural disaster in its modern history.

In Syria, which has reported more than 5,800 deaths, the United Nations World Food Program announced that authorities in the country’s northwest are blocking access to the area.

This complicates our operations. “It must be resolved immediately,” said WFP director David Beasley on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference. Most of the casualties in Syria are in the northwest, an area controlled by opposition fighters fighting forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

“Time is running out and our money is running out. It costs our business about 50 million a month just for our response to the earthquake, so if Europe doesn’t want a new wave of refugees, we need to get the support we need.” Thousands of Syrians who fled to Turkey to escape the civil war in their country have returned home to the war zone — at least for the time being.