Turkey-Syria Earthquake: 2 Tremors Hit Again in Devastating Blow

A magnitude 6.4 earthquake slammed the border region between Turkey and Syria two weeks after being ravaged by earthquakes that killed tens of thousands of people.

According to the European Mediterranean Seismological Center, the epicenter of Monday's aftershock was in the southernmost province of Turkey, Hatay, at a depth of 2 km (1.2 miles). Suleyman Soylu, the interior minister of Turkey, stated that three people were killed and more than 200 others were injured.

Turkey, Syria Earthquake Today

The earthquake struck the city of Defne at 8:04 p.m. local time (17:04 GMT). It was felt powerfully in the adjacent capital of Hatay, Antakya, and Adana, 200 kilometers (300 miles) to the north.

Several minutes later, a second earthquake of magnitude 5.8 hit the region, according to Turkey's disaster management service. It was centered in the Samandag area of Hatay. Syria, Jordan, Israel, and Egypt, according to Turkey's state-run Anadolu news agency, felt the earthquakes.

The province of Hatay sits on the Mediterranean Sea, and the disaster service cautioned residents to stay away from the coast since the earthquakes might create a 50cm rise in water level (20 inches). The national news agency of Syria, SANA, claimed that six people were hurt by falling rubble in Aleppo. At the same time, the mayor of Hatay stated that several buildings had fallen, trapping people inside.

According to witnesses, Turkish rescue services are frantically searching for anyone needing assistance following the recent earthquakes. Per Al Jazeera, Muna al-Omar stated that she was in a tent in a central Antakya park when Monday's earthquakes struck.

On February 6, 7.8 and 7.6 magnitude, earthquakes devastated southeast Turkey and neighboring Syria, leaving about 47,000 people dead and one million displaced. The estimated economic damage of the tragedy is in the tens of billions of dollars.

The victims of Monday's earthquake were discovered in Antakya, Defne, and Samandagi, according to Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu, who urged the public not to visit potentially hazardous structures. Soylu said that 213 persons were hurt in Turkey.

Witnesses said that buildings in Antakya had sustained more damage, while the mayor of Hatay, in southern Turkey, said that individuals were buried beneath debris. Since the quake on February 6, Turkish officials have registered more than 6,000 aftershocks. However, the BBC's regional staff reported that the most recent tremor was substantially stronger than earlier ones.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights claimed that 470 wounded persons attended hospitals following the earthquake, which was also felt in Egypt and Lebanon. Afad said there were 32 aftershocks following Monday's earthquake, with the highest magnitude of 5.8.

There is dread and terror in the streets; queues of ambulances and rescue teams are attempting to reach locations where the walls of severely damaged buildings have crumbled.

Earthquake Damage

Many structures that remained intact following the earthquake on February 6 have since collapsed, including a bridge. Many road fissures have developed into deep scars, making it more difficult for emergency personnel to reach locations where they may be required.

Three minutes later, the disaster management office tweeted that a 5.8-magnitude earthquake occurred in the Samandag area of Hatay. Teams from Agence France-Presse also felt the earthquake in Lebanon and Syria.

The walls of severely damaged buildings fell as numerous injured individuals shouted for assistance. Twelve-year Antakya resident Mazlum was searching for the remains of his sister and her family, as well as those of his brother-in-law and his family.

A few meters away, a road-clearing excavator was buried in debris following the last earthquake. The province of Hatay sits on the Mediterranean Sea, and the disaster service warned that the water level might increase by 50 centimeters, advising residents to avoid the coast.

A photographer with Agence France-Press in the northern city of Azaz reported that structures damaged in the last earthquake had toppled. The quake on February 6 killed 41,156 people in Turkey and 3,688 in Syria, but the death toll is expected to grow when the wreckage is cleared, and rescue efforts conclude, according to experts.

The earlier earthquakes affected eleven provinces; however on Sunday, officials reported that just two provinces, Hatay and Kahramanmaras, have ongoing rescue efforts. Over 118,000 structures were damaged by the earthquake in southeastern Turkey and northern Syria two weeks ago.

On Monday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pledged to construct approximately 200,000 new, more durable, four-story homes within the next year, as per SCMP.