New Turkey earthquake traps people under rubble
Turkey has been hit by another earthquake, leaving people trapped under the rubble, with rescuers desperately searching for life.
The latest quake – a 6.4 magnitude tremor – struck near the city of Antakya near the border with Syria. At least six people have been killed.
The earlier earthquakes – that devastated both Turkey and Syria, left more than 44,000 people dead and tens of thousands of people homeless.
Buildings weakened by those tremors collapsed in both countries on Monday.
The quake occurred at 20:04 local time at a depth of 10km, according to Turkey’s disaster and emergency agency. Then came a 5.8 aftershock three minutes later and 31 subsequent aftershocks that were not as severe.
Turkey’s health minister Dr Fahrettin Koca, said 294 people have been injured – 18 of them seriously.
Death toll low in latest Turkey earthquake
The death toll is much lower this time, due to it striking an area that was largely empty after being badly hit by the first quake on 6 February.
Reports from the city of Antakya spoke of fear and panic in the streets as ambulances and rescue crews tried to reach the worst affected areas where the walls of badly damaged buildings had collapsed.
“I thought the earth was going to split open under my feet,” local resident Muna al-Omar told Reuters news agency, crying as she held her seven-year-old son. She had been in a tent in a park in the city centre when the new earthquakes hit.
Ali Mazlum, 18, told AFP news agency he had been looking for the bodies of family members from the previous earthquakes when the latest tremors hit.
“You don’t know what to do… we grabbed each other and right in front of us, the walls started to fall,” he said.
Significant fear still remains
Many people in the city of Adana have sought safety at a volleyball centre that was converted into a rescue centre following the first quakes earlier in the month.
The BBC reports that authorities have shared with them they believe as many as 600 people may have arrived overnight – seeking a sturdy, ground-level building in which to take shelter.
Reports suggest when the quake struck, people ran out into the streets, highlighting the significant fear that remains in the country.
In Syria, some 470 injured people are said to have visited hospitals after Monday’s quakes, which were also felt in Egypt and Lebanon.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Turkey on Monday and announced $100m (£83m) in humanitarian aid, saying the US would help with recovery “for as long as it takes.”
It is one of several countries to have offered help since the first quakes hit – rescue operations are being to wind down in all but two areas, as hopes of finding people alive are fast fading.
