Foreign news agencies reported on 18 February 2023 that two strong earthquakes, magnitude 7.8 and 7.5, hit Turkey and Syria. More than 45,000 people have been killed, with 39,672 in Turkey, and at least 5,800 in Syria, with the number virtually unchanged over the past several days.
The total number of fatalities mentioned This made the quake the worst natural disaster Turkey has faced in decades. and is expected to increase further As more than 264,000 apartments were destroyed across the country. But rescuers are still not desperate to find survivors. Even following more than 12 days had passed.
On Saturday, rescuers from Kyrgyzstan tried to free a family of five Syrians from the rubble in Antakya. southern turkey They were able to bring the father and mother and another child back up. But the boy later died of dehydration. Two other twins trapped together did not survive.
Meanwhile, experts and doctors in Turkey have expressed concern over the possibility of outbreaks in the disaster area. where thousands of buildings collapsed The sanitation infrastructure has been severely damaged.
Turkey’s Health Minister Fahrettin Koka said on Saturday that Although more gastrointestinal and upper respiratory tract infections were found But the number is still not a serious threat to public health. Koga added that They have already implemented a number of measures to monitor and prevent the outbreak.
As for neighboring countries like Syria which has been severely disorganized by a civil war that has been going on for more than a decade. Many deaths were found in the Northwest. The territory, which is controlled by rebels once morest President Bashar al-Assad’s government, has made the use of aid difficult.