There were more fatalities in southeast Turkiye after a new earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale struck the already devastated province of Hatay on Monday evening.
It follows two mega earthquakes that hit the same region two weeks ago, which has killed more than 48,000 people and left millions of people displaced.
At least three people were reported dead and more than 200 injured in Turkiye as a result of the latest tremor, which occurred just after 8pm and was centred around Samandağ, according to Turkish officials. Monday’s earthquake was followed by an aftershock tremor measuring 5.8.
Search and rescue teams had been dispatched to Hatay province and its capital Antakya – one of the worst affected cities following the 6 February quakes – with police reporting of survivors being pulled out from a variety of low-rise buildings.
Over the border in Syria, civil defence organisation The White Helmets said there were over 130 injuries, mostly non-life threatening. More buildings had also collapsed on Monday in those areas where extensive damage had occurred from previous earthquakes.
Monday’s strong earthquake was also felt in Cyprus, Israel, Egypt and Jordan, causing widespread panic.
Mehmet Kokum, an assistant professor of geology based in Elazığ, a city in eastern Turkiye, told Al Jazeera on Monday that there had been more than 5,000 aftershocks since the initial massive earthquakes on February 6.
“This is quite expected,” he said. “We know in our experience the aftershocks will last from months to years. But it’s going to decrease day by day.”
People live through the Hatay 6.4 earthquake on 20 Feb., which violently shakes all
Hatay’da meydana gelen 6.4 büyüklüğündeki deprem böyle görüntülendi. pic.twitter.com/TbbRmrQ33M
— Pusholder (@pusholder) February 20, 2023
People in Hatay rush from their homes onto the streets as Monday evening’s 6.4 earthquake strikes
Hatay’da yaşanan 6,4’lük deprem anında evlerinde bulunan vatandaşlar kendilerini sokağa attı. #Deprem pic.twitter.com/SffgmIsKAy
— mühendisyen (@muhendisyenn) February 21, 2023
Earlier today, the Turkish disaster management agency AFAD updated the number of fatalities caused by the 6 Feb. earthquakes, which now stands at 42,310 people, up from 41,156 a day earlier. The impact of the earthquake makes it Turkiye’s worst natural disaster in the past century.
The reported toll in Syria is 5,814, taking the combined death toll in both countries to over 48,000.
Click here for a list of some of the charities helping the victims of these deadly earthquakes.
Main image, top, is an aerial view taken with a drone showing collapsed buildings after a powerful earthquake in Hatay, Turkiye, on 21 February 2023. Photo © ERDEM SAHIN/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock (13776826l)
