5 killed, many buildings collapse as 7.8 magnitude earthquake rattles Turkey

Ankara [Turkey], February 6 (ANI): At least 5 people were killed as a powerful earthquake of magnitude 7.8 hit south-eastern Turkey on Monday, Turkey-based Anadolu Agency reported citing Osmaniye governor.

The US Geological Survey said the 7.8 magnitude tremor struck at 04:17 local time (01:17 GMT) at a depth of 17.9km (11 miles) near the city of Gaziantep. Osmaniye Governor said that around 34 buildings have collapsed in southern Osmaniye province due to the quake, the tremors of which were felt in Ankara and nearby regions.

Anadolu Agency wrote, “5 people killed, 34 buildings destroyed in southern Osmaniye province as 7.4 earthquake hits southern provinces of Turkiye: Osmaniye governor” Notably, Osmaniye is a city on the eastern edge of the Cukurova plain in the southern part of Turkey and the capital of the province of Osmaniye.
The earthquake centred in Turkey occurred around 01:17:35 (UTC) at a depth of 17.9 km, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

According to USGS, the latitude and longitude of the earthquake were found to be 37.174N and 37.032E respectively. Nurdagi, where the quake was reported is a district and city of Gaziantep Province of Turkey. Aftershocks followed the quake. There were reports of destroyed buildings in Turkey and Syria, where tremors also were felt. Significant casualties are likely.

People took to social media to post footage of the destruction, including collapsed buildings and people trapped under the rubble. Earlier in 2020, a magnitude-6.8 quake hit Elazig city of Turkey, killing over 40 people as the geography of Turkey is seismically active and tremor-prone.

In 1999, more than 17,000 people were killed in a powerful earthquake rocked the north-west part of Turkey.