Early Photos Show Devastation In Turkey, Syria After 7.8 Magnitude Earthquake
Rescue workers and medical teams try to reach trapped residents in a collapsed building following an earthquake in Diyarbakir, southeastern Turkey, early Monday, Feb. 6, 2023.
Reports from Turkey and neighboring countries show widespread damage after a powerful earthquake measuring 7.8 magnitude hit the region Monday, leveling buildings and killing 4,600 people.
As daylight settled over cities and refugee camps housing thousands of Syrians, rescue workers were combing through the rubble as international aid groups and countries planned to send resources. Photos showed a historic mosque in pieces after the quake and there were reports from local media that fires had broken out in some regions from damaged gas lines.
The U.S. Geological Survey added that many buildings in the parts of Turkey near the initial quake’s epicenter were made of brick and concrete, making many towns “extremely vulnerable.”
Rescuers search for survivors at a damaged building following an earthquake in Diyarbakir, Turkey February 6, 2023. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
Malatya merkezdeki Yeni Cami deprem sonrası yıkıldı. pic.twitter.com/tVtMfvRDws
— Onedio (@onediocom) February 6, 2023
The Syrian American Medical Society said a hospital in the country’s Idlib province had been damaged in the temblors and had to be evacuated. Tremors were felt throughout the Levant, including in Lebanon and Israel, and the region was hit with several powerful aftershocks.
An unusually powerful 7.5 magnitude aftershock struck hours later, about 60 miles from the quake’s epicenter.
The U.S. pledged to provide “any and all” assistance needed. Photos and videos taken Monday portend a long, slow recovery effort throughout Turkey and beyond.
Damaged vehicles sit parked in front of a collapsed building following an earthquake in Diyarbakir, southeastern Turkey.
Search and rescue works continue after a 7.4 magnitude earthquake hit southern provinces of Turkey, in Diyarbakir, Turkey, on Feb. 6, 2023.
A view of debris as rescue workers conduct search and rescue operations after the 7.4 magnitude earthquake hits Kahramanmaras, Turkey.
A view of collapsed building after the earthquake on Feb. 6, 2023, in Sanliurfa, Turkey.
A view of destroyed building after earthquakes jolted Turkish citizens awake early Monday morning.
Members of the Syrian civil defence, known as the White Helmets, look for casualties under the rubble following an earthquake in the town of Zardana in the countryside of the northwestern Syrian Idlib province, early on Feb. 6, 2023.
Residents search for victims and survivors amidst the rubble of a building that collapsed, following an earthquake in the village of Azmarin, near the Turkish border in the north of Syria's rebel-held northwestern Idlib province, early on Feb. 6, 2023.
An aerial view of debris of a collapsed building after the powerful earthquake hit Sanliurfa, Turkey on Feb. 6, 2023.
Members of the Syrian civil defence, known as the White Helmets transport a casualty pulled from the rubble following an earthquake in the town of Zardana in the countryside of the northwestern Syrian Idlib province, early on Feb. 6, 2023.
A view of a collapsed building as search and rescue works continue in Hatay, Turkey, after the earthquake hit the southern provinces of the country on Feb. 6, 2023.
A man stands next to the rubble of a building following an earthquake in the town of Sarmada in the countryside of the northwestern Syrian Idlib province, early on Feb. 6, 2023.
