Death toll rises in Türkiye due to February 6 earthquakes

Ankara, Feb 23 (Prensa Latina) The Government of Türkiye on Thursday stated that the death toll due to the February 6 earthquakes recorded in Kahramanmaras, a province near the border with Syria, surpassed more than 43,500.

Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu told TRT television that 43,556 people were confirmed dead in the country, adding that the earthquakes are among the strongest in the world.

We are responsible to each of our citizens who lost their lives. This trauma can only be overcome with great unity and solidarity, but we will come out of this stronger, Soylu said.

So far, about 8,000 aftershocks of the first quake, which measured 7.4 on the Richter scale, have been recorded. It indicated that 75 to 80 percent of the buildings in Kahramanmaras were damaged, the minister stressed.

According to information from the Civil Defense, to the death toll in Türkiye 1,414 more deaths in Syria’s government-controlled areas and 2,274 in rebel-held areas must be added.

These numbers are expected to increase as the search continues.