RUBBLE. More than 6,000 aftershocks were recorded after the powerful quakes that hit southern Türkiye on Feb. 6. Search and rescue teams remain hopeful to save more lives under the rubble. (Anadolu)
ANKARA – The number of aftershocks following the two powerful earthquakes that struck southern Türkiye on Feb. 6 has reached over 6,000, an official from the Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) said Sunday.
"The number of aftershocks caused by the two earthquakes has reached 6,040. Among them, 1,628 aftershocks were measured as a magnitude of 3-4, 436 of them with a magnitude of 4-5, and 40 with a magnitude of 5-6. There was also a 6.6 magnitude quake," Orhan Tatar, the general director of the earthquake and risk reduction at AFAD, said at a media briefing in southern Kahramanmaras province.
Tatar warned of more aftershocks after the devastating tremors that killed more than 40,000 people.
"Especially after earthquakes of this magnitude, aftershocks will continue for a longer period. Some of these aftershocks may have a magnitude 5 and above,” Tatar said.
As a result of the earthquakes, the earth's crust moved by 7.3 meters (24 feet). That is a "very serious number. The quakes also unleashed a great deal of energy," he added.
The impact of these earthquakes reached 110,000 square kilometers (42,471 square miles) and caused damage in many provinces and districts, he said.
Addressing claims on social media of flashes of light in the sky resembling lightning bolts during the earthquakes, he said intense lightning during quakes is "quite normal."
The 7.7 and 7.6 magnitude earthquakes, centered in Kahramanmaras province, affected more than 13 million people and killed 41,020 across 11 provinces, including Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, Elazig and Sanliurfa.
In Syria, at least 5,840 people have been killed. (Anadolu)
