The number of victims of the catastrophic earthquakes in Turkey and Syria exceeded 15,000 people. The confirmed death toll in Turkey has risen to 12,391, with at least 2,950 in Syria, Reuters reported as of 8 a.m. on February 9.
Syria’s ambassador to the UN said that the country “lacks capabilities and equipment”, blaming his country’s more than decade-long civil war and Western sanctions.
According to the Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD), quoted by Daily Sabah, the number of dead in our southern neighbor as of 8 am on February 9 is 12,873 people, a the number of injured reached 62,937 people.
AFAD also notes that over 1,052 aftershocks have occurred since Monday’s two major earthquakes.
During his visit to southern Turkey, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday said that 6444 buildings were destroyed in the earthquakes, hit 10 provinces and affected 13 million people.
At least 60,000 accredited volunteers, including those from non-governmental organizations and foreign teams are looking for living people under the debris, the Turkish president also points out.
According to AFAD more than 98,150 people from the rescue teams currently conducting operations in the field, with 5,309 employees coming from other countries.
78 Bulgarian firefighters are helping the victims of the earthquake in Turkey
Bulgaria was one of the first countries to respond to the requests for help from our southern neighbor
In addition to rescue teams, blankets, tents, food and psychological support teams were sent to the affected areas.
A total of 70,818 family tents were set up to shelter survivors, indicated by AFAD and added that 5,514 vehicles, including excavators, tractors and bulldozers, were also dispatched to the disaster area.
As a reminder, an earthquake measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale struck Turkey on Monday night, followed by a series of aftershocks, including one measuring 7.6. It caused heavy destruction and casualties in Turkey and neighboring Syria.
Turkey on Tuesday declared a three-month state of emergency in 10 provinces – Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kahramanmaras, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye and Şanlıurfa. Erdogan also announced 7 days of national mourning following the devastating earthquakes.
The UN is asking for access to Northwestern Syria
The aim is to facilitate humanitarian supplies
