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Two massive earthquakes are reported to have killed more than 2,300 people and wounded many thousands more in Turkey and Syria – with experts warning the death toll was likely to rise sharply as snowy, freezing conditions hamper rescue efforts.
The magnitude 7.8 tremor struck overnight near the city of Gaziantep, and was felt nearly 1,000km away in Cairo, leaving a huge trail of destruction in Turkey and Syria, where many remained trapped below rubble as a second 7.5 magnitute earthquake then hit just hours later.
Authorities said 1,498 people were killed in 10 Turkish provinces, with more than 430 people declared dead in Syria and at least 380 in the country’s rebel-held northwest.
Natural hazards expert Dr Steven Godby warned that the vulnerability of the population and winter snow could make rescue efforts more difficult, saying: “Unfortunately the death toll is likely to climb quickly.”
“The first 24-48 hours is when most people are normally rescued in this situations, but the cold weather may reduce that time. The challenge is further compounded by the fact that there are already large numbers of displaced people in northern Syria as a result of the civil war.”
Key Points
- Strong 7.8 magnitude earthquake hits Turkey on Monday morning
- Second powerful earthquake rocks Turkey after morning devastation
- Situation in Syria ‘disastrous’ with many trapped in rubble, officials say
- At least 2,300 killed and thousands more injured, reports say
- Death toll likely to climb quickly, warns expert
Experts fear death toll can significantly increase amid harsh winter conditions
12:50 , Stuti Mishra
As rescuers continue to dig through mountains of debris, experts are raising alarms over the harsh conditions and severity of the earthquake that can increase the death toll further from the current 1300.
Dr Steven Godby, an expert in natural hazards at Nottingham Trent University, has warned that the vulnerability of the population and winter snow can make rescue efforts more difficult and drive up the death toll.
“Unfortunately the death toll is likely to climb quickly,” Mr Godby said. “A similar magnitude earthquake that hit Izmit in Turkey in 1999 killed more than 17,000 people and left more than a quarter of a million homeless.”
“Early images show the pancake collapse of several buildings in the affected area and these are associated with significant loss of life – typically 30% of those in these kinds of collapse lose their lives.”
“The earthquake struck early in the morning when people will have been asleep at home and the weather is very cold meaning those trapped in rubble face the threat from low temperatures.”
“The first 24-48 hours is when most people are normally rescued in this situations, but the cold weather may reduce that time. The challenge is further compounded by the fact that there are already large numbers of displaced people in northern Syria as a result of the civil war.”
Moment child and parents pulled alive from rubble after Syria earthquake
16:24 , Andy Gregory
Bel Trew | This is the morning ‘doomsday’ came to Turkey and Syria
16:16 , Andy Gregory
Our international correspondent Bel Trew reports:
At 4.17am, Ismail Abdalla says “doomsday” came to his building in Idlib northwest Syria, violently tearing everyone awake.
The Syrian first responder grabbed his one-month-old baby. With just seconds to spare, he dived for cover as part of the roof caved in on top of his bed where they had been sleeping.
Next door was not so fortunate. The neighbouring apartment block collapsed, killing 15 members of an internally-displaced family who had already fled multiple frontlines. Around Abdalla – buildings in the opposition-held area that have been battered by more than a decade of civil war – crumbled one by one.
“It was like someone was shaking all the apartments, it was like doomsday. The roof was waving, it was seconds of terror,” says the 36-year-old father-of-three who volunteers with the Syria Civil Defence organisation, known colloquially as the White Helmets. He is now working to free the injured and dead.
“Entire families are trapped under the rubble, until now we are trying to save people. But the situation is bigger than the White Helmets. It is bigger than any non-governmental organisation, this needs a state-level response to handle it. “
“I’m talking about whole villages, whole areas of cities, destroyed.”
Aerial footage captures earthquake damage in Syria’s Idlib
15:51 , Andy Gregory
‘It is a catastrophe’: Earthquake leaves trail of destruction across Turkey and Syria
15:31 , Andy Gregory
“It is a catastrophe,” Abdel Kafe al Hamdou, a Syrian activist and scholar in northern Syria, told The Independent, describing scenes in the vicinity of Atareb.
“Dozens of people are still under the rubble. Dozens of people are dead. Unfortunately, everything happened at once in an area that didn’t have any equipment. People are working with their bare hands trying to save their relatives. People are really paralysed, and don’t know what to do.”
Our international correspondent Borzou Daragahi has more in this report:
Deadly earthquake leaves vast trail of destruction in Turkey and Syria
Where exactly did the earthquakes strike?
15:14 , Andy Gregory
At least 2,300 killed and thousands more injured
15:04 , Andy Gregory
At least 2,300 people are said to have been killed and many more thousands injured, according to the Associated Press.
Nearly 1,500 people were killed in 10 Turkish provinces, with some 8,500 injured, the country’s disaster management agency said.
The Syrian health ministry said more than 430 people had died in government-held areas, with some 1,280 injured. In Syria’s rebel-held northwest, groups that operate there said the death toll was at least 380, with many hundreds more injured.
Video: Chandelier swings as powerful earthquake rocks Turkey and Syria
14:30 , Stuti Mishra
A timeline of world’s strongest earthquakes over the last 20 years
14:10 , Stuti Mishra
In the wake of a 7.8 magnitude earthquake that has struck Turkey and northwest Syria, killing hundreds of people across both nations, here are some the largest earthquakes from around the world during the past two decades.
A timeline of world’s strongest earthquakes over the last 20 years
Deadly earthquake exacerbates suffering of displaced Syrians
13:50 , Stuti Mishra
“The powerful 7.8 magnitude quake that struck before dawn on Monday wreaked new damage and suffering in Syria’s last rebel-held enclave, already wrecked by years of fighting and bombardment and housing millions of displaced Syrians who had fled their homes during the country’s civil war.
Hospitals and clinics are flooded with injured. In the enclave, centred in Idlib province, many of the displaced live in dire conditions in makeshift camps. Many others there and in neighboring government-held areas are housed in buildings weakened by past bombings and left even more vulnerable to shocks from earthquakes.”Read the full report:
Deadly earthquake exacerbates suffering of displaced Syrians
Moment building collapses as 7.8-magnitude earthquake hits Turkey and Syria
13:30 , Stuti Mishra
‘Crisis within multiple crises’: Rights group raises concerns for vulnerable Syrians after earthquake devastation
13:10 , Stuti Mishra
The Internationa Rescue Committee says its “deeply concerned” about the impact of this morning’s devastating earthquake on the vulnerable communities in Turkey and Syria.
In a statement, the organisation said with rising casualty figures, there are “very real concerns about the ability of an already decimated health system to cope inside Syria.”
“This earthquake is yet another devastating blow to so many vulnerable populations already struggling after years of conflict. It is a crisis within multiple crises – temperatures are plummeting to below zero leaving thousands exposed,” said Tanya Evans, Syria Country Director for IRC.
“Women and children will find themselves particularly at risk of exploitation and abuse should they find themselves once again displaced.”
“Many in northwest Syria have been displaced up to 20 times and with health facilities strained beyond capacity, even before this tragedy many did not have access to the health care they critically need.”
Footballer Christian Atsu trapped ‘under rubble’ after Turkey earthquake
13:00 , Stuti Mishra
Footballer Christian Atsu is reportedly among those trapped after an earthquake in Turkey.
Atsu, 31, a former Chelsea and Newcastle winger, joined Hatayspor last summer, and the club’s sporting director Taner Savut is also thought to be trapped.
Follow our live blog here for the latest.
China willing to offer humanitarian aid to Turkey, Syria
12:30 , Stuti Mishra
China is willing to provide humanitarian emergency aid to earthquake-struck Turkey and Syria, a spokesperson from China International Development Cooperation Agency has said.
China expressed condolences and concern for the loss of life and property, and is in communications with both Turkey and Syria.
Turkey death toll rises to over 1,000
12:17 , Stuti Mishra
The death toll in Turkey has been updated to 1,014, the country’s disaster agency head has said.
Earlier Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan said more than 5,000 people were confirmed injured following the devastating earthquake this morning, believed to be the country’s largest disaster since 1939.
Mr Erdogan said adding that 2,818 buildings collapsed as a result of the 7.8 magnitude quake.
The combined death toll in Turkey and Syria has crossed 1,500 with rescuers continuing to dig through debris amid harsh winters.
Death toll in opposition-controlled areas in Syria rises to at least 221
11:42 , Stuti Mishra
The White Helmets, a civil defence group that operates in opposition-controlled areas in Syria, has updated the death toll to 221, adding that at least 419 people are confirmed to be injured.
The agency said they are facing “difficulty in rescue efforts as hundreds remain trapped under rubble & heavy equipment needed.”
“Number expected to rise as hundreds of families still trapped,” it said in a tweet, sharing graphic images of dead bodies wrapped in sheets.
Photos show devastating scenes as rescuers dig through snow and rubble to find victims
11:30 , Stuti Mishra
Turkey shuts down southern airport
11:23 , Stuti Mishra
Turkey’s southern Adana airport has been closed for flights until further notice, Demiroren news agency has reported.
The devastating earthquake has left a trail of destruction in seven southern provinces in Italy as well as northern areas of Syria with 1,300 people confirmed dead so far.
Breaking: Second powerful earthquake rocks Turkey
11:02 , Stuti Mishra
Turkey has been hit with a second earthquake measuring more than 7 magnitude, according to measurements from the US Geological Survey.
The tremor, measuring 7.5 magnitude was picked up about four kilometres outside Ekinozu, which is around 100 miles north of Gaziantep, close to where the first earthquake hit.
More details here:
Second powerful earthquake rocks Turkey hours after morning devastation
President Erdogan says 45 countries promised help, here’s a roundup of who has offered what so far
10:51 , Stuti Mishra
Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that 45 countries have so far offered to send help and aid as the country witnesses a death toll of almost 1,000 in the aftermath of the deadly 7.8 magnitude earthquake.
Here’s a round-up of some of the detailed offers of assistance that have been made to Turkey and Syria so far today, which include:
- India’s government said two teams from India’s National Disaster Response Force comprising 100 personnel with specially trained dog squads and equipment were ready to be flown to the disaster area. Medical teams were being readied and relief material was being sent in coordination with the Turkish authorities.
- Poland will send a rescue group consisting of 76 firemen and eight dogs.
- The European Union said it had activated its emergency Copernicus satellite mapping service to help first responders working on the ground.
- Russia’s emergencies ministry said it had two IL-76 aircraft with 100 rescuers were ready to fly out to Turkey if required.
- Urban rescue teams from Spain are preparing to travel to Turkey, the interior ministry said.
- Taiwan’s fire department said it had a team of 130 people, along with five search dogs and 13 tonnes of aid, ready to go to Turkey, and was awaiting a response.
New Syria death toll
10:29 , Chris Stevenson
At least 326 people were killed in Syria and more than 1000 people injured following a major earthquake in neighbouring Turkey, state news agency (SANA) quoted a senior health official as saying.
“The number of casualties from the earthquake rose to 326 dead and 1,042 injured,” Ahmed Damiriyya, an aide to the Syrian health minister, said.
The toll reported by state media is thought to include only those living in government-held areas.
New death toll in Turkey
10:25 , Chris Stevenson
Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said the death toll in the country has reached at least 912, with 5,000 injured.
Mr Erdogan said it was the country’s largest disaster since 1939, adding that 2,818 buildings collapsed as a result
Putin says Russia ready to help Syria and Turkey
10:09 , Chris Stevenson
Russian president Vladimir Putin offered Russian assistance on Monday to Syria and Turkey after a major earthquake of magnitude 7.8 killed more than 500 people and injured thousands in the two countries.
Russia, which is closely allied with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, maintains a significant military presence in that country.
Mr Putin also has a strong rapport with President Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, a NATO member which has nevertheless sought to mediate in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
“Please accept my deep condolences on the numerous human casualties and large-scale destruction caused by a powerful earthquake in your country,” Mr Putin said in his message to Mr Erdogan.
“We are ready to provide the necessary assistance in this regard.”
Separately, Mr Putin told Mr Assad that Russia shared “the sadness and pain of those who lost their loved ones” and said Russia was ready to provide help.
Earlier, Russia’s defence ministry said its military facilities in Syria had not been damaged by the earthquake. (see post below)
At least 147 dead in Syria’s opposition controlled areas as rescuers urge international help
09:55 , Chris Stevenson
An opposition emergency organisation in Syria called The White Helmets said on Twitter that 147 people had died and more than 340 were injured in Syria in areas where it operates because of the earthquake that struck Turkey.
“The toll may increase as many families are still trapped,” it wrote. “Our teams are on the ground searching for survivors and removing the dead from the rubble.”
Source:The Independent