An earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale struck the border region between Turkey and Syria after it was devastated by earthquakes two weeks ago that killed tens of thousands of people.
The Euro-Mediterranean Seismological Center said Monday’s seismic center was centered in Turkey’s southernmost province of Hatay at a depth of 2 km (1.2 miles).
Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said three people were killed and more than 200 wounded.
The quake hit the city of Defne at 8:04 pm (1704 GMT) and was strongly felt in the nearby Hatay capital Antakya and in Adana, 200 kilometers (300 miles) to the north.
Turkey’s disaster management agency said a second quake of magnitude 5.8 shook the area several minutes later. It was stationed in the Samandağ district of Hatay.
Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency said the quake was felt in Syria, Jordan, Israel and Egypt.
Hatay province lies on the Mediterranean Sea, and the disaster agency urged people to stay away from the coast, warning that earthquakes could cause sea levels to rise by as much as 50 centimeters (20 inches).
Syria’s official news agency, SANA, reported that six people were injured in Aleppo from falling debris while the mayor of Hatay said a number of buildings collapsed, trapping people inside.
‘Very afraid’
Al Jazeera’s Asad Baig, from Gaziantep, Turkey, said aftershocks were continuing and there were reports of more buildings being destroyed in the area.
“There are buildings standing, but they are damaged,” Page said. “The fear is that if there are more aftershocks like this, it could demolish those buildings, threatening lives. A lot of people here are very scared.”
Witnesses said Turkish rescue teams are running after the recent earthquakes to check if people need help.
Mona Al-Omar said she was in a tent in a park in central Antakya when the earthquakes hit on Monday.
“I thought the ground would open up under my feet,” she said, sobbing as she held her 7-year-old son. “Will there be another aftershock?”
Earthquakes measuring 7.8 and 7.6 struck southeastern Turkey and neighboring Syria on February 6, killing more than 47,000 people and displacing a million people. The economic cost of the disaster is expected to run into tens of billions of dollars.
Mehmet Kokum, an associate professor of geology in Elazig, Turkey, said there have been more than 5,000 aftershocks since February 6.
“It is completely expected,” he told Al Jazeera. “We know from our experience that aftershocks will last from months to years. But they will decrease day by day.”
Hatay Mayor Lutvu Savas said a number of buildings collapsed on Monday. Savaş said he believed those trapped had either returned to their homes or were trying to move furniture from their damaged homes.
In the Turkish city of Adana, Alejandro Malaver said people have fled their homes into the streets, carrying blankets into their cars, where many plan to sleep.
Syria struck again
Abdulkafi al-Hamdo, an opposition activist in northern Syria, said earthquake survivors were terrified by the recent tremors.
“This earthquake, although it was a little shorter and weaker, caused more terror to people,” he told Al Jazeera.
“Because of the previous experience, people panicked and shocked, so everyone rushed outside. Some people had accidents in speeding, and some even jumped from their balconies to escape the earthquake. People here are not safe.”
Media in Syria’s Idlib and Aleppo governorates reported that some buildings collapsed and electricity and internet services were disrupted in parts of the region, which was badly damaged by earthquakes two weeks ago.
News agencies said many people fled their homes and gathered in open areas.
The Syrian American Medical Society, which runs hospitals in northern Syria, said it had treated a number of patients, including many who had heart attacks due to fright.
The Syrian Civil Defense, a volunteer emergency response group in opposition-held areas also known as the White Helmets, has urged residents of northwest Syria to follow guidelines on how to respond to earthquakes and how to evacuate buildings.
The death toll from earthquakes two weeks ago rose Monday to 41,156 in Turkey, the disaster management agency said, and is expected to rise further. About 6,000 people have been killed in Syria.
An estimated 385,000 apartments were destroyed or seriously damaged, and many people are still missing from the February 6 disaster.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that construction of about 200,000 apartments in 11 quake-hit provinces will start next month.
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