Dozens of buildings were destroyed or heavily damaged, while it is reported that people could be trapped in the rubble.
The strong earthquake of magnitude 7.8 that struck the southern part of Turkey early Monday morning, and which was followed by aftershocks, has caused several fatalities.
At least five people are known to have lost their lives in the city of Osmaniye, while 34 buildings were destroyed, local governor Erdinc Yilmaz said. Meanwhile, the mayor of the city of Adan, Zeydan Karalar, reported that a 17-story building collapsed. The earthquake also caused damage to buildings in the cities of Kahramanmaras, Kilis, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep, Hatay and Malatya, reports Anadolu Agency.
For his part, the head of the Turkish Red Crescent, Kerem Kinik, urged citizens to donate blood to help the medical team that cares for those affected. “We are doing additional shipments of blood and blood products to the earthquake region. We have national reserves in our regional blood banks for shipment of the first phase. However, we invite our citizens to donate throughout Turkey during the day for additional needs that may arise in the coming hours,” tweeted.
According to LBCI Lebanon Englishthe earthquake has been felt in Syria, Lebanon, Greece, Cyprus, Iraq and Iran, as well as other places in Europe and the Middle East.
Erdogan’s reaction
“I convey my best wishes to all our citizens who were affected by the earthquake that occurred in Kahramanmarash and was felt in many parts of our country,” wrote Erdogan on his official Twitter account, where he explained that all relevant units are on alert under the coordination of the Turkish Disaster and Management Authority (AFAD, for its acronym in Turkish).
Likewise, the president explained that search and rescue teams were immediately sent to the areas affected by the earthquake. “We hope to get through this disaster together as soon as possible and with as little damage as possible,” he concluded.
Syrian Civil Defense called to the population to leave the residential buildings and move away to open places, as well as to inform the authorities about possible people trapped under the rubble.
More information, shortly.
Source: RT
