A powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake rattled the southern province of Kahramanmaraş, claiming the lives of at least 912 people and injuring 5,385 others, while tremors were also in nine other provinces in the country.
The magnitude 7.7 quake struck 7 kilometers (4.3 miles) below the surface in Kahramanmaraş’s Pazarcık district on Feb. 6 at 4:17 a.m., according to Türkiye’s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD).
AFAD revised the magnitude of the earthquake from 7.4 to 7.7
The earthquake also rocked the neighboring provinces of Gaziantep, Şanlıurfa, Diyarbakır, Adana, Adıyaman, Malatya, Osmaniye, Hatay and Kilis and neighboring countries, including Syria and Lebanon.
Two more earthquakes of 6.4 and 6.5 magnitudes followed the first one, which also rocked southern Türkiye.
After the 7.7 magnitude earthquake centered in Kahramanmaraş’s Pazarcık district, 66 aftershocks were experienced in the region, of which three quakes were of magnitude 6, 14 were over magnitude 5 and 34 were over magnitude 4, AFAD announced.
It was reported that the most severe damage and loss of life in the earthquake occurred in the Pazarcık, Elbistan and Türkoğlu districts of Kahramanmaraş.
According to initial information received from the governor’s office, 300 buildings collapsed across the city.
At least 84 people lost their lives, while 225 others sustained injuries in the province.
A total of 1,710 buildings collapsed in 10 provinces due to the massive earthquake, Vice President Fuat Okay announced.
“After the earthquake, our ministers went to the region. We are struggling with extremely severe weather conditions. Seventy of our citizens lost their lives in Kahramanmaraş, the center of the earthquake. These numbers probably will increase,” Oktay expressed.
In Gaziantep, at least 80 people were confirmed dead, and 600 others were injured.
At least 47 people lost their lives in Malatya, with 550 others injured. Some 300 buildings collapsed in the province as the powerful earthquake struck in the wee hours of the morning.
A hospital in Hatay’s İskenderun district collapsed due to the earthquake, Oktay reported.
A runway at Hatay Airport was severely damaged after the quake, while flights were immediately halted.
Gaziantep and Kahramanmaraş provinces were also closed to civil flights.
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 Kahramanmaraş provinces.
