Ankara: The death count from the earthquakes in Turkey has risen to 45,089, the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) said on Wednesday, bringing the total toll including Syria to about 51,000.
An earthquake of magnitude 7.8 centered in the Pazarcik district jolted Kahramanmaras and hit several provinces, including Gaziantep, Sanliurfa, Diyarbakir, Adana, Adiyaman, Malatya, Osmaniye, Hatay, and Kilis. Later in the day, an earthquake of 7.6 magnitude centred in Kahramanmaras’s Elbistan district jolted the region.
The earthquake was also felt in several neighbouring countries, including Lebanon and Syria. The third earthquake of magnitude 6.0 on the Richter scale hit Goksun, Turkey.
The United Nations said the first quake of magnitude 7.8 that had hit southern Turkey early Monday was the county’s most powerful quake in more than 80 years.
More than 160,000 Turkish buildings containing 520,000 apartments collapsed or were severely damaged in the disaster, the worst in the country’s modern history.
