After 7.8 magnitude earthquake rocks Turkey and Syria, death toll estimated to reach 20,000

02/08/2023 / By Belle Carter

A 7.8 magnitude earthquake shook Turkey and Syria in the early hours of Monday, Feb. 6. The death toll is at 8,364 as of writing, with 2,470 casualties in Syria and 5,894 in Turkey.

Both nations also experienced massive and strong aftershocks.

After the first quake, the U.S. Geological Survey recorded more than 60 aftershocks, including a major one at 7.5 magnitude, CNN reported. World Health Organization (WHO) officials fear that the toll will rise inexorably as they estimated up to 20,000 may have died. (Related: VIDEO: Thousands killed in Turkey, Syria following massive quake that struck with no warning.)

Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay said more than 8,000 people had been pulled from the debris in Turkey. He added that about 380,000 people have taken refuge in government shelters or hotels, with others huddling in shopping malls, stadiums, mosques and community centers. Turkey’s Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure said that overnight 3,400 people took shelter in trains being used as emergency accommodation.

Meanwhile, Turkey’s disaster management agency said it had 11,342 reports of collapsed buildings, of which 5,775 had been confirmed. The agency has deployed more than 24,400 search and rescue personnel to search the area.

On Tuesday, Feb. 7, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared a disaster zone in the 10 provinces affected by the earthquakes, imposing a state of emergency in the region for three months. The day before, he also declared seven days of national mourning.

The United Kingdom’s foreign secretary said on Tuesday that three British nationals are currently missing while four Australians are unaccounted for following the earthquakes. There are about 40 other Australians and their families in the area, according to Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Countries around the world already dispatched teams to assist in the rescue efforts while others immediately pledged to send rescuers and other aid, including Ukraine and Russia, which are in the middle of a war against each other.

Newborn baby rescued from the rubble of a collapsed building

The past days have brought dramatic rescues, including a newborn baby who was dug through a collapsed building in a northwest Syrian town. The crying infant was found in front of the mother’s legs, with the umbilical cord still connecting them.

Ramadan Sleiman, a relative, told the Associated Press that the baby girl’s mother, Afraa Abu Hadiya, was found dead when the baby was rescued and the baby was the only member of her family to survive during the earthquake.

After the emergency response teams got her out of the wreckage, a female neighbor cut the cord, and she and others rushed the baby to a children’s hospital in the nearby town of Afrin, where she was kept in an incubator. The baby was rescued more than 10 hours after the quake struck, reports stated.

A video circulating on social media showed the moments after the baby was removed from the rubble. A man lifted the baby up, while her umbilical cord was still dangling. He then rushed her away from the scene as another man followed suit, throwing him a blanket to wrap the baby in.

“Hadiya must have been conscious during the birth and must have died soon after,” Maarouf said. He estimated the baby was born several hours before being found, given the amount her temperature had dropped to 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit). The baby had bruises, including a large one on her back, but now is in stable condition, added the doctor.

“Had the girl been left for an hour more, she would have died,” he said. “Our only concern is the bruise on her back and we have to see whether there is any problem with her spinal cord.” But she has been moving her legs and arms normally, he said.

According to Sleiman, Hadiya, her husband and four children apparently tried to rush out of their apartment building but the structure collapsed on them. Their bodies were found near the building’s entrance. The family was laid to rest in a cemetery on the outskirts of Jinderis on Tuesday.

Follow Disaster.news for more updates on worldwide calamities such as earthquakes.

Watch the Health Ranger Mike Adams’ situation update on the latest big earthquake in Syria and Turkey below.

This video is from the Health Ranger Report channel on Brighteon.com.