An earthquake measuring 7.8 magnitude struck central Turkey on Monday morning, killing at least 100 people and causing 34 buildings to collapse, according to officials, who warned that the death toll is likely to rise. The earthquake, according to the Turkey disaster agency, has left at least 440 people injured.
According to the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ), the quake occurred at a depth of 10 kilometers (6 miles) close to the Turkish city of Kahramanmaras in the south, and the EMSC monitoring service said that the possibility of a tsunami was being evaluated.
Another powerful tremor occurred shortly after the earthquake. According to reports, the quake was felt in several provinces in the region. The earthquake was roughly 33 kilometers from Gaziantep, a major city and provincial capital, according to the US Geological Survey. It was approximately 26 kilometers away from Nurdagi.
According to HaberTurk television, a number of buildings collapsed in the nearby provinces of Malatya, Diyarbakir, and Malatya. In numerous cities on both sides of the border, rescue workers and residents frantically searched for survivors beneath the rubble of collapsed buildings.
Lebanon and Syria also felt the earthquake. Buildings shook in Damascus and Beirut, and many people fled to the streets in fear.