A 7.8 magnitude earthquake has hit southeast Turkey and Syria, killing over 190 people and trapping dozens more in the rubble of toppled buildings. The quake was centered near the city of Gaziantep and has caused widespread destruction and injury, with at least 76 deaths reported in seven Turkish provinces. 42 aftershocks have been felt in the two hours following the quake. The powerful jolt toppled hundreds of buildings, sending residents into the snowy streets for safety.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has dispatched search and rescue teams to the affected areas. In Syria, the quake killed at least 100 people and damaged buildings in the cities of Aleppo and Hama. People in Damascus were forced to evacuate to open areas.
The Syrian American Medical Society reports that emergency rooms are full of injured individuals. In Lebanon, the quake shook buildings for about 40 seconds, causing residents to leave their homes. Italy has warned of potential tsunami risk and advised citizens to move to higher ground. Turkey, located on top of major fault lines, has a history of earthquakes, including a devastating quake in 1999 that killed 18,000 people.
“I have never felt anything like it in the 40 years I’ve lived,” said Erdem, a resident of the Turkish city of Gaziantep, near the quake’s epicentre. “We were shaken at least three times very strongly, like a baby in a crib,” he told Reuters.
The quake jolted residents in Lebanon from beds, shaking buildings for about 40 seconds. Many residents of Beirut left their homes and took to the streets or drove in their cars away from buildings.