A 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck the city of Antakya, Turkey on Monday, near the epicenter of the massive quakes that devastated Turkey and Syria on 6 February.
Initial reports say that at least six people were killed and dozens were trapped under the rubble. Buildings weakened by the earlier earthquakes collapsed in both countries on Monday.
20 Subat, Hatay Samandag, M6.4, Antakya Merkez’de karavanımın ön cam kamera görüntüsü: pic.twitter.com/G5ePshuiMv
— Analitik_Herif (@seribere) February 20, 2023
The Feb. 6 quakes killed 44,000 people in Turkey and Syria with tens of thousands more left homeless.
The 6.4 earthquake that struck at 20:04 local time was followed by a 5.8 aftershock three minutes later and 31 subsequent aftershocks that were not as severe.
The health minister, Dr Fahrettin Koca, said 294 people have been injured – 18 of them seriously.
Earthquake spreads panic and fear in Turkey
BBC reports that the death toll has been relatively low this time because the earthquake struck in an area that was largely empty after it was badly hit by the 6 February quake.
Reports from the city of Antakya spoke of fear and panic in the streets as ambulances and rescue crews tried to reach the worst affected areas where the walls of badly damaged buildings had collapsed.
In the city of Adana, the latest earthquake drove people to a volleyball centre that had been converted into a rescue centre following the first earthquake.
In Syria, some 470 injured people are said to have visited hospitals after Monday’s quakes, which were also reportedly felt in Egypt and Lebanon.
In a visit to Turkey on Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced $100m (£83m) in humanitarian aid, saying that America would help with earthquake recovery “for as long as it takes”.
It is one of several countries, including Greece, to have offered their help in the wake of the first earthquake.
Rescue operations had recently been wound down in all but two areas, with hopes of finding people alive fading fast.
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