Over 33,000 Dead from Earthquakes in Turkey, Syria

NOTE: This story contains the latest figures as of February 12.

More than 33,000 people have died and more than 75,000 are injured after two earthquakes struck Turkey and Syria on Monday, Feb. 6. While earthquakes are not uncommon in Turkey, these earthquakes are being considered one of the worst natural disasters of the century, and the death toll is expected to rise.

The first earthquake, with a 7.8 magnitude, struck the city of Gaziantep in southeast Turkey, roughly 150 miles from the Turkey-Syria border, at 4:17 a.m. local time, which reached a depth of 11 miles. The second earthquake, with a 7.5 magnitude, hit the city of Kahramanmaras in Turkey, roughly 80 miles north of Gaziantep, at 1:24 p.m. and was six miles deep. Both quakes destroyed around 6,000 buildings. The quakes could be felt as far as Lebanon, Greece, Israel and Palestine. Around 13.5 million Turks and millions more Syrians have been affected by the quakes.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has been Turkey’s president for almost 20 years, visited Kahramanmaras, which is currently the epicenter of the earthquakes.

“We are face to face with a great disaster,” Erdogan told survivors.

However, many in Turkey, including politicians, have blamed Erdogan for the slow response in rescue aid. Erdogan has blamed the shortcomings on winter weather conditions and failing infrastructure for the lack of aid to survivors.

“[The Justice and Development Party] failed in this as they failed in every other issue, they don’t know how to manage the state,” said Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, the leader of the Republican’s People Party, the main opposition party in Turkey. “If there is anyone responsible for this process, it is Erdoğan. It is this ruling party that has not prepared the country for an earthquake for 20 years.”

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said on Thursday that the first relief convoy reached northern Syria, which is also facing freezing winter conditions. “More help is on the way, but much more, much more is needed,” Guterres said. President Biden has also sent aid to Turkey and Syria.

“At my direction, senior American officials reached out immediately to their Turkish counterparts to coordinate any and all needed assistance,” Biden said on Feb. 6. “Our teams are deploying quickly to begin to support Turkish search and rescue efforts and address the needs of those injured and displaced by the earthquake.”