Turkey Earthquake: 4,000 dead, World Health Organization fears 20,000 deaths in Turkey-Syria earthquake
Images of the rubble after a strong tremor struck Turkey-Syria early yesterday morning led many experts to fear it would be one of the deadliest earthquakes of the century. As time passes, the death toll is increasing. The death toll in the two countries has already exceeded 4,000. World health figures fear that the total number of dead in Turkey and Syria due to the terrible earthquake may exceed 20,000.
This fear of world health numbers cannot be called completely unfounded. Because more or less twenty-four hours have passed since the earthquake, there is still a lot of rescue work to be done because many people are still buried under the rubble of houses and multi-story buildings in a wide area. As time goes on, their chances of survival also decrease.
Turkey’s Vice President Fuat Otke said the death toll in the country so far is 2,379 The number of injured is more than 14 thousand On the other hand, according to official statistics in Syria, the number of dead is 1444. There are thousands of injured However, the death toll in Syria is believed to be higher. because a large part of the earthquake in Syria is in the hands of the rebels. There is no government control. But in all those areas, there has been extensive damage from the earthquake. As a result, the number of casualties in that area is not yet available. According to the government, the number of wounded in Syria is about 3500.
In the meantime, severe cold has hindered the rescue work. Several countries, including India, have already sent rescue teams to stand by Turkey. But rescue operations are not being carried out at the expected speed amid the intense cold. It is believed that the rescue operation may continue until next week.
According to the United States Geological Survey, the source of the earthquake was 18 kilometres below the surface near the city of Gaziantep in Turkey. The tremor was first felt in Turkey yesterday at 4:17 a.m. local time. The earthquake calculated 7.9 on the Richter scale.. Due to the early morning earthquake, many people were buried under the rubble in their sleep. About 2 million people live in Gaziantep city. Almost the entire city has been destroyed. After that, Turkey was shaken by several strong tremors yesterday. Tremors were also felt in several countries, including Lebanon, Greenland, Greece, and Cyprus.