A 6.4-magnitude earthquake struck Hatay province in southern Turkey and northern Syria, killing six people and sparking fresh panic after a major tremor on February 6 left nearly 45,000 people dead in both countries.
Disaster response agency AFAD reported deaths, as well as nearly 300 hospitalizations, while in Syria the White Helmets aid group said at least 150 people were injured in the Aleppo region.
The earthquake struck the Turkish city of Defne on Monday at 8:04 pm (1704 GMT) and was strongly felt by the AFP team in the city near Antakya. This was also felt in Lebanon and Cyprus.
Turkey’s disaster management agency said on Twitter that an earthquake of 5.8 on the Richter scale followed three minutes later, with the epicenter in the Samandag district of Hatay province.
The agency recorded two more tremors of magnitude 5.2 about 20 minutes after the first on Monday.
“The road moves like a wave. The building goes back and forth, cars go left and right. It scared me,” said Mehmet Irmak, who works at a notary’s office in Antakya.
“Hatay is not safe anymore. I heard that many buildings collapsed,” said Irmak who had been sleeping in his car for two weeks after the first earthquake.
“We will wait for a new day, but I don’t know what we will do,” he said.
Among the dead were three people who were trapped after returning to their damaged apartment to retrieve belongings, AFAD said, warning people not to return home at risk.
On Tuesday, the organization said it was sending 6,000 extra tents to the region to shelter those in need.
– ‘Open Earth’ –
Images from the DHA news agency showed a hospital in Antakya being evacuated, while broadcaster NTV reported that a hospital was being evacuated in the city of Iskenderun.
DHA said patients in the intensive care unit were taken by ambulance to a field hospital to continue treatment.
Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said rescue workers were trying to find people trapped in the rubble.
An AFP reporter reported scenes of panic in Antakya, with fresh tremors sending dust into the devastated city.
The wall of the badly damaged building collapsed as several people, who appeared to be injured, called for help.
On the street in Antakya, Ali Mazlum, 18, told AFP: “We are with AFAD who are looking for the bodies of our families during the earthquake.
“You don’t know what to do … we’re holding on and in front of us, the wall starts to collapse. It feels like the earth is opening up to swallow us up.”
Mazlum, who has lived in Antakya for 12 years, is looking for the bodies of his brother and his family as well as his brother and his family.
The Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS) said five hospitals it supports in northwestern Syria received several people with minor injuries, some when parts of damaged buildings fell.
In the government-held area of Syria, an Aleppo hospital also received panicked residents, while six people were injured in the rubble, state news agency SANA said.
Al Razi hospital in Aleppo received 47 cases, state media reported.
“We are in a hurry to get out, we don’t know how to go. I am afraid that we will meet the same fate as those who died in the rubble,” said Khadija Al Khalaf, a 45-year-old mother, in the rebel-held town of Azaz.
– Aftershocks –
According to AFAD, more than 6,200 aftershocks have been recorded since the 7.8 magnitude hit Turkey and Syria on February 6, leaving millions homeless.
Officials said after the quake, an aftershock would be felt within a year due to the strength of the first quake.
Officials have put the death toll from the quake at 41,156 people in Turkey and 3,688 in Syria, but experts say the number is likely to rise as rubble is cleared and rescue operations are completed.
Eleven provinces in Turkey were hit by the quake earlier and on Sunday, officials said rescue operations would continue in only two: Hatay and Kahramanmaras.
“My thoughts continue with the people of Turkey and Syria, as they face the impact of the new earthquake that hit the region this afternoon,” UN chief Antonio Guterres wrote on Twitter.
The UN team there is “assessing the situation, and we are ready to provide additional support if needed”, he said.
Earlier on Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken held talks in Ankara with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, during which he concluded a visit during which he pledged solidarity after the tremors.
The United States has contributed $185 million in aid to Turkey and Syria.