New Quake Hits Turkey, Toppling More Buildings: 1 Killed

ANKARA, Turkey — ANKARA, Turkey Authorities said a magnitude 5.6 earthquake struck southern Turkey on Monday, three weeks after a catastrophic quake devastated the region, causing some already damaged buildings to collapse and killing at least one person.

According to Yunus Sezer, the chief of the country’s disaster management agency, AFAD, over 100 people were injured due to Monday’s earthquake, which was centred in Yesilyurt in Malatya province. More than a dozen buildings were destroyed.

A father and daughter were rescued with injuries after being trapped beneath the ruins of a four-story building in Yesilyurt. They had gone into the damaged building to retrieve their belongings.

In Malatya, search-and-rescue teams were sifting through the rubble of two damaged buildings that had collapsed on some parked cars, according to HaberTurk. It was unclear whether anyone was trapped beneath the debris.

Malatya was one of 11 Turkish provinces affected by the magnitude 7.8 earthquake that struck southern Turkey and northern Syria on February 6.

The quake killed over 48,000 people in both countries and destroyed or severely damaged 185,000 buildings in Turkey.

Turkey was one of 11 Turkish provinces affected by the magnitude 7.8 earthquake.

The AFAD chief urged people not to enter damaged buildings, citing the risk of strong aftershocks. Since February 6, the region has been hit by over 10,000 aftershocks.

According to the World Bank, the massive earthquake caused $34.2 billion in “direct damages,” equivalent to 4% of the country’s GDP in 2021.

According to the World Bank, the cost of recovery and reconstruction could be twice as high, with GDP losses adding to the total cost of the earthquake.

The World Bank also estimated that 1.25 million people were temporarily displaced.

Meanwhile, Besiktas fans in Turkey threw stuffed animals onto the field during a match on Sunday to support children affected by the earthquake. Toys and winter clothing were thrown on the stadium grounds to be donated to earthquake-affected children.

SOURCE – (AP)