The magnitude 7.8 quake, which hit before sunrise in bitter winter weather, was the worst to strike Turkiye this century.
Residents jolted out of sleep by the pre-dawn quake rushed outside in the rain and snow to escape falling debris, while those who were trapped cried for help. Throughout the day, major aftershocks rattled the region, including a jolt nearly as strong as the initial quake. After night fell, workers were still sawing away slabs and still pulling out bodies as desperate families waited for news on trapped loved ones.
“My grandson is 1 1/2 years old. Please help them. Please. We can’t hear them or get any news from them since morning. Please, they were on the 12th floor,” Imran Bahur wept by her destroyed apartment building in the Turkish city of Adana. Her daughter and family were still not found. The earthquake has coincided with a winter storm in Turkiye that has led to significant flight disruptions. Temperatures in some areas were expected to fall to near freezing overnight. The forecast for Gaziantep, the epicentre, is for highs of about 3.8 C. Tens of thousands who were left homeless in Turkiye and Syria faced a night in the cold.
In Gaziantep, people took refuge in shopping malls, stadiums and community centers. Mosques around the region were opened to provide shelter.
In Kahramanmaras, resident Melisa Salman, told BBC that living in an earthquake zone meant she was used to “being shaken”, but Monday’s tremor was “the first time we have ever experienced anything like that’. “We thought it was the apocalypse.” Turkish Vice-President Fuat Oktay said such a disaster could hit “once in a hundred years”. He added some 145 aftershocks have been registered following the deadly quake overnight, with three that were larger than 6.0 magnitude.
Residents jolted out of sleep by the pre-dawn quake rushed outside in the rain and snow to escape falling debris, while those who were trapped cried for help. Throughout the day, major aftershocks rattled the region, including a jolt nearly as strong as the initial quake. After night fell, workers were still sawing away slabs and still pulling out bodies as desperate families waited for news on trapped loved ones.
“My grandson is 1 1/2 years old. Please help them. Please. We can’t hear them or get any news from them since morning. Please, they were on the 12th floor,” Imran Bahur wept by her destroyed apartment building in the Turkish city of Adana. Her daughter and family were still not found. The earthquake has coincided with a winter storm in Turkiye that has led to significant flight disruptions. Temperatures in some areas were expected to fall to near freezing overnight. The forecast for Gaziantep, the epicentre, is for highs of about 3.8 C. Tens of thousands who were left homeless in Turkiye and Syria faced a night in the cold.
In Gaziantep, people took refuge in shopping malls, stadiums and community centers. Mosques around the region were opened to provide shelter.
In Kahramanmaras, resident Melisa Salman, told BBC that living in an earthquake zone meant she was used to “being shaken”, but Monday’s tremor was “the first time we have ever experienced anything like that’. “We thought it was the apocalypse.” Turkish Vice-President Fuat Oktay said such a disaster could hit “once in a hundred years”. He added some 145 aftershocks have been registered following the deadly quake overnight, with three that were larger than 6.0 magnitude.