Facts About the Earthquake in Türkiye
1) On February 6th, catastrophic and deadly earthquakes struck the Southeastern part of Turkey and Northern Syria at a magnitude of 7.8, followed by a strong 7.7 aftershock hours later. More than 2,000 aftershocks were recorded — 150 aftershocks of 4.0 or greater.
2) These twin earthquakes were no ordinary powerful disasters. Their impacts were felt as far as 600 miles away. According to geological experts, the power of the first earthquake equaled the combined energy of 130 nuclear bombs.
3) This was a “strike-slip” earthquake, meaning two pieces of the Earth slid horizontally past each other, In this case, the Arabian Plate slid past the Anatolian Plate and caused a huge gap 11 miles deep.
4) The area that was devasted had 10 heavily populated cities as well as rural areas in size compared to approximately “from our Mexico border of San Diego to almost Santa Barbara, 250 plus miles long and 225 miles wide”.
5) At least 13 million people were affected. Over 11,000 buildings collapsed. Several UNESCO World Heritage sites and structures of historical significance were damaged or completely destroyed. (i.e. Gaziantep Castle, Sirvani Mosque, and Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch)
6) Freezing temperatures, snowfall, damaged roads and airports hindered the frantic search and rescue efforts for survivors trapped under toppled buildings. Several of those trapped under the rubble live-streamed their pleas for help on social media.
7) The search and rescue efforts were further complicated by the location of the quake zone, in a region already burdened by a war and a refugee crisis, and straddling government- and opposition-controlled lands in Syria.
8) As of February 14th, the death toll has exceeded 41,000. Over 300,000 people are injured, and an unknown number of people are still missing. By comparison, the worst earthquake in California’s history which occurred in 1906 resulted in 3,000 causalities.