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Turkey-Syria quake updates: Aftershocks hit devastated region

All the updates from February 20, as they happened.

Two injured people lie on the ground after a 6.4-magnitude quake hit the Hatay province in Antakya, southern Turkey.
Two injured people lie on the ground after a 6.4-magnitude earthquake hit the Hatay province [Yasin Akgul/AFP]
Published On 20 Feb 202320 Feb 2023
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The live blog is now closed, thank you for joining us. These were the updates on the Turkey-Syria earthquake for February 20:

  • Two new powerful aftershocks hammered Turkey and Syria, both countries still reeling from devastating earthquakes on February 6 that killed at least 47,000 people.
  • A magnitude 6.4 earthquake hit the Turkey-Syria border region at a depth of just 2km (1.2 miles), the European Mediterranean Seismological Centre said.
  • At least three people have been killed, and 213 have been wounded in the tremors, according to Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu.
  • The shallow aftershock was followed by a magnitude 5.8 earthquake several minutes later, centred not far from the first in Turkey’s Hatay region.

You can find information on how to donate to earthquake relief efforts here.

  • live-orange
    20 Feb 2023 - 22:02
     (22:02 GMT)

    Doctors still struggling with aftermath of previous quakes

    Al Jazeera correspondent Zeina Khodr, reporting live from Lebanon, said that some of the injuries reported in opposition-controlled northwestern Syria were the result of “panic” and that hospitals remain overwhelmed in the aftermath of the previous quakes.

    “Some people actually jumped from their balconies,” Khodr said. “In hospitals, there is still an emergency. Doctors are still dealing with the thousands of cases of injuries as a result of the two earthquakes two weeks ago.”

    Khodr also noted that options for those in the region are slim, as they are hemmed in by Syrian armed forces on one side and southern Turkey on another, which itself was devastated by the earthquakes.

    “These are people left to deal with this disaster alone,” she said. “While some aid has trickled in, it is still not enough to deal with the crisis.”

  • live-orange
    20 Feb 2023 - 20:55
     (20:55 GMT)

    Turkey to build nearly 200,000 homes in quake-hit region: Erdogan

    President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that Turkey will build almost 200,000 new homes in the country’s southeastern region.

    He promised reconstruction work would begin in March to build 199,739 homes in the affected provinces.

    “None of these buildings will be more than three or four storeys high,” he promised, after the earthquakes caused several high-rise blocks of flats to collapse.

  • live-orange
    20 Feb 2023 - 20:25
     (20:25 GMT)

    People in northern Syria ‘don’t trust anything’

    Abdulkafi Alhamdo, an activist in northern Syria, tells Al Jazeera that although they were shorter and weaker, the latest earthquakes still caused horror for people.

    “Because of the previous experience, people have panic, trauma, so everyone rushed outside,” he said.

    “Some people got into accidents rushing out,” he said. “Some even jumped from their balconies to escape the earthquake. People here are not safe. They don’t trust anything, even if their buildings are very strong.”

    A state of panic and fear among the people, as a result of the earthquake that struck the northwestern regions of Syria
    Two aftershocks on February 20, 2023 caused panic and fear among survivors of the earthquakes two weeks ago [Ali Haj Suleiman/Al Jazeera]
  • live-orange
    20 Feb 2023 - 20:05
     (20:05 GMT)

    Three people killed, 213 wounded in quakes: Turkish interior minister

    At least three people have been killed and 213 have been wounded in two new earthquakes in southern Turkey, according to Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu.

  • live-orange
    20 Feb 2023 - 19:51
     (19:51 GMT)

    Turkish Vice President Oktay: Eight people are injured

    Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay says eight people have been injured in the magnitude 6.4 aftershock.

    “We have eight injured people taken to hospitals,” he said as he asked people in the region not to enter damaged buildings.

  • live-orange
    20 Feb 2023 - 19:43
     (19:43 GMT)

    ‘Aftershocks will last from months to years’

    Mehmet Kokum, an assistant professor of geology based in Elazig, Turkey, says there has been more than 5,000 aftershocks since the initial earthquakes on February 6.

    “This is quite expected,” he told Al Jazeera. “We know in our experience the aftershocks will last from months to years. But it’s going to decrease day by day.”

  • live-orange
    20 Feb 2023 - 19:22
     (19:22 GMT)

    Video shows the moment earthquake strikes airport in Hatay

    Watch the moment the magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck Hatay’s airport and sent panic through the region once again.

    View this post on Instagram

    A post shared by Al Jazeera English (@aljazeeraenglish)

     

     

  • live-orange
    20 Feb 2023 - 19:14
     (19:14 GMT)

    ‘There is massive mental stress on people’

    Al Jazeera’s Stefanie Dekker, reporting from Adana in Turkey, says the continuing earthquakes have put massive mental stress on people living in the region.

    “We covered wars and other dangerous situations … You can read certain things when it comes to wars,” she said.

    “But when you are dealing with Mother Nature, there is nothing you can do, and I believe this is having a major impact on the people here.”

  • live-orange
    20 Feb 2023 - 19:04
     (19:04 GMT)

    Video shows rescue efforts at collapsed building

    A video shared by Haluk Levent, an activist and singer, reportedly shows a collapsed building in Hatay and rescue teams from Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency working on the site.

    Şehit Murat Apaydın caddesinde yıkılan bina.@AFADBaskanlik ekipleri müdahale ediyorlar. pic.twitter.com/YpFYETjm77

    — Haluk Levent (@haluklevent) February 20, 2023

  • live-orange
    20 Feb 2023 - 18:52
     (18:52 GMT)

    ‘Anger, sorrow, anxiety’: Healing scars of Turkey’s quake victims

    The massive earthquakes that struck southeastern Turkey and northwestern Syria have not only caused death and destruction but also deep trauma to the survivors.

    Psychologists have headed to quake-hit areas to help residents cope with the devastating impact of the magnitude 7.8 and 7.6 temblors, which hit two weeks ago.

    They say psychosocial programmes should be implemented in the region to educate and help people cope with trauma so they can go back to routine life.

    Read more here.

    People seek shelter outside after an earthquake in Antakya in Hatay province
    Residents flee outside after an earthquake in Antakya in Turkey’s Hatay province [Clodagh Kilcoyne/Reuters]
  • live-orange
    20 Feb 2023 - 18:23
     (18:23 GMT)

    Turkey’s disaster agency warns waters could rise on Mediterranean coast

    Turkey’s disaster management agency is urging residents to stay away from the Mediterranean coast, warning that waters could rise 50cm (20 inches) due to the quakes.

    The Disaster and Emergency Management Authority also said its teams in the region are on alert and responding to emergency calls.

  • live-orange
    20 Feb 2023 - 18:16
     (18:16 GMT)

    ‘People are very scared’

    Al Jazeera’s Assed Baig, reporting from Gaziantep, says there are reports of more structures being destroyed on the Turkish-Syrian border as aftershocks continue to rock the region.

    “There are buildings that are standing but have been damaged,” Baig said. “The fear is if there are more aftershocks like this, it could bring down those buildings, threatening lives.

    “Many people here are very scared.”

  • live-orange
    20 Feb 2023 - 18:13
     (18:13 GMT)

    Second quake of magnitude 5.8 hits Turkey’s Hatay province

    A second earthquake of magnitude 5.8 struck southern Turkey’s Hatay province several minutes after the initial magnitude 6.4 tremor, Turkey’s emergency management agency says.

    The second one was centred in Hatay’s Samandag district, just southwest of where the first hit.

    Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay urged people to stay away from damaged buildings and to follow officials’ warnings.

    People react after an earthquake in Antakya in Hatay province, Turkey
    People ran from their homes and shelters in Antakya, capital of Turkey’s Hatay province, when two new earthquakes struck minutes apart [Clodagh Kilcoyne/Reuters]
  • live-orange
    20 Feb 2023 - 18:08
     (18:08 GMT)

    Magnitude 6.4 quake hits Turkish-Syrian border area

    More earthquakes struck the border region of Turkey and Syria, just two weeks after the area was devastated by twin temblors that killed last least 47,000.

    Monday’s magnitude 6.4 tremor was centred near the city of Defne outside Antakya in Turkey’s southernmost province of Hatay. It was felt in Syria, Egypt and Lebanon.

    There were reports of people trapped under buildings.

Source: Al Jazeera and news agencies

Related

  • ‘Anger, sor­row, anx­i­ety’: Heal­ing scars of Turkey’s quake vic­tims

    Ex­perts say psy­choso­cial pro­grammes should be en­act­ed to help sur­vivors cope with trau­ma and go back to rou­tine life.

    Published On 20 Feb 202320 Feb 2023
    Brother of survivor Gokhan Ugurlu, 35, reacts as rescuers work in the aftermath of a deadly earthquake, in Hatay, Turkey February 12, 2023.
  • Fear, pan­ic as new earth­quakes hit Turkey-Syr­ia bor­der, killing 6

    Mag­ni­tude 6.3 and 5.8 earth­quakes rocked Turkey and Syr­ia bor­der re­gion; hun­dreds in­jured.

    Published On 20 Feb 202320 Feb 2023
    A member of Turkish police special forces carries a wounded man in Hatay province.
  • Grass­roots fundrais­ing ef­forts grow for Turkey-Syr­ia quakes

    Sev­er­al com­mu­ni­ties across the world – al­ready deal­ing with their own hard­ships – have launched fundrais­ing ef­forts.

    Published On 20 Feb 202320 Feb 2023
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  • Turkey winds down earth­quake res­cue op­er­a­tions

    Search and res­cue ef­forts stopped in all Turk­ish provinces, apart from Hatay and Kahra­man­maras.

    camera
    Published On 20 Feb 202320 Feb 2023
    Aftermath of the earthquakes in Turkey

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