Turkey, Syria Earthquake: As Over a 150 Killed, Deja Vu of Similar 1999 Devastation | Explained

A powerful 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit southeast Turkey and Syria early Monday, toppling buildings and sending panicked residents pouring outside in a cold winter night. At least over a 100 were killed, and the toll was expected to rise. LIVE UPDATES

Rescue workers and residents using flashlights were searching through piles of tangled metal and concrete rubble in one of the stricken cities. People on the street shouted up to others inside a partially toppled apartment building, leaning dangerously.

Where All Did the Earthquake Strike?

The quake, felt as far away as Cairo, was centered north of the city of Gaziantep in an about 90 kilometers (60 miles) from the Syrian border. Along with several cities, the area is home to home to millions of Syrian refugees who fled their country’s long-running civil war.

Turkey sits on top of major fault lines and is frequently shaken by earthquakes. Some 18,000 were killed in powerful earthquakes that hit northwest Turkey in 1999

Turkey, which borders Syria to the north, hosts the largest number of Syrian refugees in the world.

On the Syrian side of the border, the quake smashed opposition-held regions that are packed with several million displaced Syrians with a decrepit health care system after years of war.

At least 11 were killed in one town, Atmed, and many more were buried in the rubble, a doctor in the town, Muheeb Qaddour, told The Associated Press by telephone.

Is Turkey an Earthquake Prone Area?

Turkey is located in one of the seismically active regions of the world, a report by BBC states.

In 1999, a devastating earthquake that shook the country’s north-west claimed the lives of almost 17,000 people.

The 1999 Izmit Earthquake

The disastrous Izmit earthquake of 1999, also known as the Kocaeli earthquake or the Gölcük earthquake, occurred on August 17, 1999, close to the city of Izmit in northwest Turkey.

Numerous mid-sized villages and cities were completely devastated, and thousands of people were killed, reports said.

Just after three in the morning local time, an earthquake struck the northernmost segment of the North Anatolian fault system. Its epicentre was located about 7 miles (11 km) southeast of Izmit.

The first shock had a duration of less than a minute and had a magnitude of 7.4. On August 19, two moderate aftershocks occurred close to the original epicentre, around 50 miles (80 km) west.

As a result of thousands of structures collapsing or being severely damaged, including the Turkish navy headquarters in Gölcük and the Tüpraş oil refinery in zmit, more than 17,000 people were killed and an estimated 500,000 others were rendered homeless.

The towns of Gölcük, Derince, Darca, and Sakarya (Adapazar) recorded high casualty rates. The earthquake farther west in Istanbul resulted in a large amount of destruction and hundreds of fatalities.

The Faultline Where the 2023 Earthquake Occurred

According to a report by USGS, the 7.8-magnitude earthquake occurred in southern Turkey, close to Syria’s northern border.

A magnitude 6.7 aftershock occurred 11 minutes after the initial earthquake. An earthquake of magnitude 7.8 was caused by shallow strike-slip faulting. A near-vertical left-lateral fault striking northeast-southwest or a right-lateral fault striking southeast-northwest were both ruptured by the event.

According to preliminary information, the earthquake occurred close to a triple-junction of the African, Arabian, and Anatolia plates.

Rescue Operations

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Twitter that “search and rescue teams were immediately dispatched” to the areas hit by the quake.

“We hope that we will get through this disaster together as soon as possible and with the least damage,” he wrote.

There were at least 6 aftershocks, and Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu urged people not to enter damaged buildings due to the risks.

“Our priority is to bring out people trapped under ruined buildings and to transfer them to hospitals,” he said.

Tallies from various officials put the toll at at least 18 dead in Turkey and 13 in Syria. At least 130 buildings tumbled down in Turkey’s Malatya province, Gov. Hulusi Sahin said.

In northwest Syria, the opposition’s Syrian Civil Defense described the situation in the rebel-held region as “disastrous” adding that entire buildings have collapsed and people are trapped under the rubble. The civil defense urged people to evacuate buildings to gather in open areas. Emergency rooms were full of injured, said Rass.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake was centered about 33 kilometers (20 miles) from Gaziantep, a major city and provincial capital. It was centered 18 kilometers (11 miles) deep, and a strong 6.7 aftershock rumbled about 10 minutes later.

Syria’s state media reported that some buildings collapsed in the northern city of Aleppo and the central city of Hama.

In Damascus, buildings shook and many people went down to the streets in fear.

The quake jolted residents in Lebanon from beds, shaking buildings for about 40 seconds. Many residents of Beirut left their homes and took to the streets or drove in their cars away from buildings.

The earthquake came as the Middle East is experiencing a snowstorm that is expected to continue until Thursday.

With inputs from the Associated Press

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