New 6.3 magnitude quake rocks Turkey as death toll nears 47,000
Written by ABC Audio All Rights Reserved on February 21, 2023
(SAMANDAG, Turkey) — A 6.3 magnitude earthquake rattled Turkey on Monday night, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, even as the country is still cleaning up from one of the worst natural disasters in its history.
The quake was centered near the southern city of Samandag, located in Hatay province, which suffered catastrophic damage in the quake that struck on Feb. 6.
The latest earthquake came as officials from Turkey and Syria said the death toll from the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck two weeks ago has reached 46,957 total, with 41,156 in Turkey and 5,801 in Syria.
Search and rescue crews in Turkey and Syria are surveying the latest damage from the new tremor. At least three people are dead, and 213 people have been injured in Turkey from Monday’s quake, according to the Turkish government.
The mayor of Hatay said people are trapped under rubble from newly collapsed buildings from the latest earthquake.
At least 130 people were injured in northwest Syria as the latest quake struck, the White Helmets, Syria’s Civil Defense Unit, tweeted. Several balconies and walls collapsed from the tremors, the White Helmets tweeted.
“Several civilians injured from falling building debris, stampedes, and jumping from high areas. Additionally, in Jenderes, north of Aleppo two uninhabited buildings and the minaret of a mosque collapsed,” the organization tweeted.
There were no immediate reports of deaths in Syria.
At a Turkish camp for 700 people who are now homeless from the prior earthquake, buildings shook for about 15 seconds around 8 p.m. local time and lights went off in the distance.
Most of the people in the camp were sitting outside huddling around fires to keep warm when the earthquake occurred. Many started praying and shouting to get away from buildings.
Several aftershocks were felt following the initial quake.
ABC News’ Engin Bas contributed to this report.
Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.