1. collections

Türkiye-Syria earthquakes 2023

Related links
Türkiye: Izmit earthquake 1999
Image
Temporary tents raised for the 2023 earthquake survivors in Turkiye
Midary/Shutterstock

Introduction

On 6 February 2023, two earthquakes struck southern and central Türkiye, and northern and western Syria. The first had a magnitude of Mw 7.8 and the second of Mw 7.7.

In Türkiye, there were at least 31,974 deaths (as of 14 February 2023) and 80,278 injured across the ten most affected provinces. At least 13.5 million people and 4 million buildings have been affected. The Ministry of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change conducted damage inspections for 763,000 buildings; at least 41,791 buildings in 10 Turkish provinces were heavily damaged or destroyed, leaving about 150,000 people homeless.

The economic losses are likely to surpass $20bn, according to Verisk (FT, 14 February 2023).

In Syria, at least 5,714 people were killed, and over 14,500 were injured (as of 13 February 2023). It was estimated that up to 5.37 million people across Syria might have been made homeless, while a total of 10.9 million people, nearly half of the country's population, were affected.

Share this
www.preventionweb.net/quick/76464 Copy to clipboard

Knowledge base

Updates

Erdoğan under fire as shoddy Turkish building standards exposed by earthquake

President faces backlash over 2018 amnesty for faults in millions of buildings despite history of natural disasters
Financial Times
A devastating magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck the Turkish province of Kahramanmaras.
Updates

Secondary crises after the Turkey-Syria earthquakes are now the greatest threat to life

While hard to track, we know from other cases that death tolls rise because of a lack of adequate medical care, clean water and shelter following disasters. These secondary crises can have devastating impacts, as past disasters around the world have shown
Conversation Media Group, the
Updates

Earthquake in Turkey exposes gap between seismic knowledge and action – but it is possible to prepare

Two days after a devastating earthquake struck, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan visited one of the worst affected areas and declared that it was “not possible to be prepared for such a disaster.”
Conversation Media Group, the
The 2011 Van earthquakes occurred in eastern Turkey near the city of Van.
Updates

Why have so many earthquakes hit Turkey and Syria?

Earthquakes in Syria and Turkey are common, but the magnitude 7.8 that shook the region on 6 February at 4:17am local time is clearly impressive. To find earthquakes this strong on this particular fault, we would have to go back to the year 1114.
Conversation Media Group, the
Updates

District suffers no loss in devastating quakes

No buildings were destroyed in Hatay’s Erzin district during the devastating earthquakes that jolted the southern provinces, with the mayor announcing that there are no casualties in the district as he has not allowed illegal construction.
Hurriyet Daily News and Economic Review - Dogan Media Group
Updates

Expert blames 'pancake' collapses for Turkey quake carnage

A seismic engineering expert in Japan has pointed to the so-called 'pancake' collapse of many buildings in Turkey as a key reason for the staggering death toll from this month's earthquake.
NHK World, Japan International Broadcasting
Updates

As Turkey earthquake death toll grows, so does criticism of the Turkish government

The deadly earthquakes in Turkey reminded Asli Aydintasbas of another moment almost 25 years ago. She was in Istanbul when a massive quake struck in 1999, killing more than 17,000 people.
NPR
Updates

Lessons from Turkey-Syria quake: earthquake, landslide, flood-prone areas in J&K need risk assessment to minimise damage

Geologists blame haphazard constructions in tectonically active zones in mountainous areas. With Jammu and Kashmir being vulnerable to disasters especially earthquake, floods, and soil erosion, experts have called for risk assessment of vulnerable areas.
Greater Kashmir Communications Pvt. Ltd.
Updates

Turkey's earthquake is a warning for Istanbul, which would face even more deaths from a quake

City has 15 million people and thousands of buildings that aren't ready
CBC/Radio-Canada
Yellow building collapsed after an earthquake.
Updates

Turkey-Syria earthquakes: shallow depth of main shocks is a key reason why they’ve been so devastating

The earthquakes that struck in Turkey and Syria in the early hours of February 6 have led to terrible destruction on a scale not seen in Europe for many decades. At the time of writing, the death toll has risen beyond 11,000 people.
Conversation Media Group, the