ANKARA/DAMASCUS: The death toll as a result of Monday’s deadliest earthquakes has reached 25,152 in Turkey and Syria on Saturday, with nearly 100,000 people injured in both of the countries.The quake has been qualified as the seventh most deadly natural disaster this century, ahead of Japan’s 2011 tremor and tsunami, and nearing the 2003 Iran earthquakes which killed 31,000.
According to Professor Dr. Övgün Ahmet Ercan, “the energy released in the earthquake is 1 megaton which is equivalent to 500 atom bombs. The earthquake was so powerful that it created a new volcano in Turkey by pushing magma (the molten or semi-molten natural material from which all igneous rocks are formed) to the surface.”
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According to latest reports gathered from local and international media outlets and sources, the death toll surpassed 20,665 in Turkey, with 80,088 reported injuries.
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The Turkish Disaster Management Agency AFAD announced that 20,665 citizens lost their lives and 80,088 citizens were injured due to earthquake, while Communications Director Fahrettin Altun said some 141,000 personnel including foreign teams were busy in rescue missions.
He said the Ankara government authorised $5B for aid, recovery efforts, in which people whose homes are uninhabitable will get $797 to cover immediate needs while those moving to other cities will get aid [$106 for home owners, $265 for renters].
In a later news conference, Vice President Fuat Oktay said 67 people were rescued from the rubble in the past 24 hours.
Oktay added more than 1 million citizens have been hosted in temporary accommodation centers.
Meanwhile, Arab countries have started mobilizing to send help to earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria, as Qatari Emir donates $14 million to earthquake survivors.
Also read: Pakistan sets up Rs10 billion relief fund for earthquake-hit Turkey: PM
On the other hand, Cuba, which has sent its “armies of white coats” to disaster sites since 1959, is dispatching healthcare workers to Türkiye and Syria, joining a growing group of nations providing rescue and medical aid.
The United Nations has warned of ‘crisis within crisis’, saying up to 5.37 million people in war-torn Syria may have been made homeless by devastating earthquakes in southern Turkey.
The total number of those killed in Syria stands at 4m478, including 2,166 deaths in rebel-held areas in the northwest region, according to volunteer organization Syria Civil Defense, also known as the White Helmets.
Syrian state media also reported 1,347 deaths in government-controlled parts of Syria, while the number of those injured across the earthquake hit areas stood at 7,396.
In Ankara, Pakistan’s Ambassador to Turkiye Dr. Yousaf Junaid and staff of Pakistan Embassy in Ankara visited collection points in the city to participate in packing of relief goods for earthquake-affected areas of Turkey.
The ambassador also presented relief assistance goods on behalf of Pakistan Embassy and Pakistan Consulate Istanbul to local authorities.
Speaking on the occasion, he said Pakistan will do everything possible to support Turkish brothers in this hour of grief.
