Ankara/Damascus: Over 300 people were killed and more than 1,000 others injured in Turkey and Syria after a massive earthquake measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale struck a wide area near the two countries’ border, according to authorities.
The US Geological Survey said the tremor occurred at 4.17 a.m. at a depth of 17.9 km near the Turkish city of Gaziantep, reports the BBC reported.
Addressing reporters, Turkey’s Interior Minister Suleymon Soylu said the 10 cities of Gaziantep, Kahramanmaras, Hatay, Osmaniye, Adiyaman, Malatya, Sanliurfa, Adana, Diyarbakir and Kilis were affected.
While in Malatya province, north-east of Gaziantep, at least 23 people were killed, in Sanliurfa, to the east, there were 17 deaths, the Minister said, adding that the rest of the fatalities were reported in Diyarbakir and Osmaniye.
About 440 people were injured in Turkey and 639 in Syria.
Meanwhile, the Syrian Health Ministry said that 237 people were killed due to the quake which was also felt in Lebanon and Cyprus.
The fatalities were reported in the regions of Aleppo, Hama, Tartus and Latakia, according to the Syrian Arab News Agency.
The agency quoted Deputy Minister of Health Ahmad Damiriyeh as saying that general emergency plans have been implemented to provide for the affected areas and that private hospitals have been ordered to receive all injured cases, reports Xinhua news agency.
The Ministry of Transport announced earlier the suspension of train traffic on all railways as a precautionary measure, pending inspection of the bridges and tracks of the railway network.
Authorities in the two neighbouring nations fear an increase in the death toll as many buildings have collapsed and rescue teams were deployed to search for survivors under huge piles of rubble.
The initial quake was followed by another one measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale at 4.26 a.m., Xinhua news agency quoted Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD), as saying.
At least 50 successive earthquakes were recorded with a maximum magnitude of 6.6, said AFAD.
Widespread damage was reported in at least 10 provinces in southern and southeastern Turkey, it added.
–IANS