More than 3,000 people died and another 15,500 were injured in the series of devastating earthquakes that rocked southeastern Turkey, near the border with Syria, and which left thousands of buildings in ruins in which on Monday night they continued to search for survivors in the midst of low temperatures.
In Turkey, the count raised the death toll to 1,760 and the number of injuries to 12,068, according to data reported by Afad, the emergency agency.
Meanwhile, in Syria, immersed in a civil war for more than a decade, the information on victims comes, on the one hand, from the government of Bashar al-Assad and, on the other, from the last enclave of the country controlled by the opposition, surrounded by by Russian-backed government forces. In the area controlled by the regime, the latest figures before the closing of this edition spoke of 593 deaths and 1,411 wounded, according to the Sana agency.
In the northwestern province of Idlib, the last opposition stronghold, and in other parts of neighboring Aleppo outside the control of Damascus, at least 700 people have been killed and some 2,000 injured, according to the White Helmets rescue group.
These opposition areas, bordering Turkey, are closer to the epicenter, so there is less ability to coordinate the count, as there is no single government authority in charge of rescue operations.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (Ocha) recalled on Monday that in these opposition areas, “strongly” affected by the earthquake, there are 4.1 million people who depend on humanitarian aid to survive, and who are mostly women and children.
(You can read: Video: Turkish journalist continued to broadcast in the middle of the second earthquake)
Devastation in Syria after the earthquake on Monday.
That body explained that communication with the terrain is difficult due to “chronic” interruptions in telephone and internet services, to which is added information about alleged roadblocks in northwestern Syria and in Turkish territory.
The Syrian Foreign Ministry asked the UN, NGOs and government organizations to “support” the government’s efforts to deal with the “humanitarian catastrophe”, according to a statement carried by the official news agency, Sana.
In Turkey, authorities reported that more than 3,700 buildings had been destroyed or badly damaged, and that the Government wants to start this Tuesday the controlled evacuation of those who need to leave the ten provinces most affected by the disaster. Afad, the Turkish emergency service, reported that it has deployed more than 9,700 rescuers.
(Also: Earthquakes in Turkey and Syria: there are no reports of Colombian injuries or deaths)
However, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned AFP that the number of victims could be up to eight times higher.
Thirteen countries of the European Union (EU) offered search and rescue teams on Monday, the European Commission reported, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan noted that 45 nations have offered help.
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Rescue operations in Turkey after the earthquake on Monday.
Gas and electricity cuts have occurred in several of the 10 hardest-hit Turkish provinces, and cracks have appeared in some reservoirs, although authorities say there is no structural damage.
The first major earthquake was recorded at 4:17 am on Monday (local time) and had a magnitude of 7.7, according to the Turkish emergency service Afad, with its epicenter in Pazarcik, in the Turkish province of Kahramanmaras. Subsequently, there were up to 145 more tremors, one of them measuring 7.6 at 10:24 am (local time).
“Because the removal of rubble continues in many buildings in the earthquake zone, we do not know how high the number of deaths and injuries will be,” Erdogan said in the morning. The president declared seven days of national mourning throughout the country.
(Keep reading: Turkey and Syria earthquake: what caused the destructive quake?)
As debris removal work continues in many buildings in the earthquake zone, we do not know how high the number of deaths and injuries will be
The low temperatures and the snow in the area, where there are also mountainous territories that are difficult to access, complicate the rescue tasks. Still, in Kahramanmaras province, an 18-year-old woman was found alive 12 hours after the tremor, and in Diyarbaki, a man was rescued after being trapped for 14 hours, Anadolu Agency said.
On the other hand, in a hospital in northwestern Syria, Usama Abdelhamid, wounded at the front, told the AFP agency how the building where he lived with his family collapsed in the middle of the night.
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People seek shelter after the strong earthquake that collapsed hundreds of buildings in Turkey.
This inhabitant of the town of Azmarin, on the border with Turkey, miraculously survived the first earthquake.
“We were sleeping when we felt a strong earthquake,” he explained to AFP, dressed in a dark tunic. “With my wife and children, we ran to the door of our third-floor apartment. When we opened it, the whole building collapsed,” he said, after being treated at Al Rahma hospital in the city of Darkush.
In a few moments, according to what he said, Usama Abdelhamid was under the rubble of the four-story building, but “Protective God” miraculously saved him and his family, he said. “The walls fell on us, but my son managed to get out and started screaming. Then people came and pulled us out of the rubble, ”he continued, moved. All of his neighbors died.
(You may be interested: Earthquake in Turkey flattened historic buildings: see before and after photos)
We ran to the door of our third-floor apartment. When we opened it, the whole building collapsed
Al Rahma hospital was overcrowded. The ambulances did not stop bringing injured, many of them children. In one of the rooms of the establishment, several wounded lay on beds. Some with bandages on their heads, others with fractures or bruises.
Anas Habache, a 37-year-old man admitted to the same hospital, also survived after feeling the tremor and going out to look for his son and his pregnant wife, who he told them to run to the entrance of his apartment, on the third and top floor of a building in Aleppo.
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Rescuers work in a building collapsed by the earthquake.
“We went down the stairs like crazy, and when we got to the street we saw dozens of frightened families,” he said. “Some were on their knees praying, others were crying, like it was doomsday,” he added. “I did not feel anything like it during these years of war. This was much worse than the bombs and bullets, ”he assured.
The devastating earthquakes were also strongly felt in Lebanon, including Beirut. One of the symbols of the enormous destruction of the quake is the historic Roman castle of Gaziantep, which had stood for more than 1,700 years and was leveled by the tremor.
The historic citadel of Aleppo in Syria, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, also suffered damage.
Turkey is located in one of the most active seismic zones in the world. Experts have long warned that a major quake could devastate Istanbul, which has allowed widespread construction without precautions.
(You can read: Earthquake in Turkey: heartbreaking videos of children rescued from rubble)
Colombia opens specialized service channels
Until Monday afternoon, there was no official information on the Colombians who may have been affected by the earthquake.
However, the Foreign Ministry announced that it had activated two service channels for compatriots who need help or some type of assistance if they are in the affected area.
As far as Turkey is concerned, if any citizen wants to contact the Colombian Government to request support, they can write to the email they have provided, [email protected], or call +90 533 088 14 59.
Meanwhile, in Syria, another of the countries greatly affected by the earthquake, the Colombian Foreign Ministry also set up a telephone and an email address.
It is the number +961 1895380 and the email [email protected].
(Also: On video: building collapses after devastating earthquake in Turkey and Syria)
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More than 3,000 people died after the strong earthquake on Monday.
In the case of Syria, the emergency lines that are being used correspond to the Colombian consulate in Beirut, which is the concurrent one, to the extent that there is no diplomatic representation in Damascus.
“The Foreign Ministry, on behalf of the Government of Colombia, expresses its solidarity with the peoples of Turkey and Syria for the earthquake that has so far claimed the lives of nearly 1,400 people, and expresses its condolences to the families of the victims” , said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs through its Twitter account.
(Keep reading: Tremor in Turkey: images of the strong earthquake of 7.8 magnitude)
In Turkey, the Colombian ambassador Julio Riaño has been pending on the official information that the Turkish authorities can provide him.
Until Monday night there was no official report of affected Colombians in either Syria or Turkey.
According to the information available, the Colombian consulate in Turkey has more than 400 Colombians registered in that country.
“All my solidarity to the peoples of Turkey and Syria. The Foreign Ministry establishes contacts to help in a concrete way,” President Gustavo Petro said on his Twitter account on Monday.
INTERNATIONAL WRITING
*With information from AFP and EFE
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