New Quake Hits Turkey, Toppling More Buildings: 1 Killed

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — A magnitude 5.6 earthquake shook southern Turkey on Monday, three weeks after a catastrophic temblor devastated the region, causing some already damaged buildings to collapse and killing at least one person, authorities said.

More than 100 people were injured as a result of Monday’s quake which was centered in the town of Yesilyurt in Malatya province, Yunus Sezer, the chief of the country’s disaster management agency, AFAD, told reporters. More than two dozen buildings collapsed.

A father and daughter who were trapped beneath the ruins of a four-story building in Yesilyurt were rescued with injuries. They had entered the damaged building to collect belongings.

Elsewhere in Malatya, search-and-rescue teams were sifting through the rubble of two damaged buildings that toppled on some parked cars, HaberTurk reported. It was not clear if anyone was trapped under the debris.

Malatya was among 11 Turkish provinces hit by the magnitude 7.8 earthquake that devastated parts of southern Turkey and northern Syria on Feb. 6.

That quake led to more than 48,000 deaths in both countries as well as the collapse or serious damage of 185,000 buildings in Turkey.

AFAD’s chief urged people not to enter damaged buildings, saying strong aftershocks continue to pose a risk. More than 10,000 aftershocks have hit the region since Feb. 6.

The World Bank said Monday it estimates that the massive earthquake caused $34.2 billion in “direct damages” — an equivalent of 4% of the country’s GDP in 2021.

The recovery and reconstruction cost could be potentially twice as large, the World Bank said, adding that GDP losses would also add to the earthquake’s cost.

The World Bank also estimated that 1.25 million people had been left temporarily homeless.

Meanwhile, fans of Turkish soccer team Besiktas threw stuffed toys on the field during a match on Sunday to support children affected by the earthquake. Toys and winter clothing were thrown on the stadium’s grounds to be donated to children in the earthquake-hit regions.

Top photo: A destroyed building leans on a neighbouring house following the earthquake in Samandag, southern Turkey, Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2023. Survivors of the earthquake that jolted Turkey and Syria 15 days ago, killing tens of thousands of people and leaving hundreds of thousands of others homeless, dealt with more trauma and loss Tuesday after another deadly quake and aftershocks rocked the region. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)