More than hundred people were killed and several other injured when a powerful earthquake rocked southeast Turkey and Syria on Monday morning. According to details, an earthquake measuring 7.8 on Richter scale rocked various areas of Turkey and Syria resultantly dozen of buildings were toppled sending panicked residents pouring outside in cold weather. The quake, felt as far away as Cairo, was centered north of the city of Gaziantep in an about 90 kilometers (60 miles) from the Syrian border. Along with several cities, the area is home to home to millions of Syrian refugees who fled their country’s long-running civil war. Turkey, which borders Syria to the north, hosts the largest number of Syrian refugees in the world.

On the Syrian side of the border, the quake smashed opposition-held regions that are packed with several million displaced Syrians with a decrepit health care system after years of war. At least 11 were killed in one town, Atmed, and many more were buried in the rubble. “We fear that the deaths are in the hundreds,” Qaddour said, referring to the rebel-held northwest. “We are under extreme pressure.” Taking to twitter, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, “Search and rescue teams were immediately dispatched to the areas hit by the quake. We hope that we will get through this disaster together as soon as possible and with the least damage.” There were at least 6 aftershocks, and Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu urged people not to enter damaged buildings due to the risks.

“Our priority is to bring out people trapped under ruined buildings and to transfer them to hospitals,” he said. Tallies from various officials put the toll at at least 18 dead in Turkey and 13 in Syria. At least 130 buildings tumbled down in Turkey’s Malatya province, Gov. Hulusi Sahin said. In northwest Syria, the opposition’s Syrian Civil Defense described the situation in the rebel-held region as “disastrous” adding that entire buildings have collapsed and people are trapped under the rubble. The civil defense urged people to evacuate buildings to gather in open areas. Emergency rooms were full of injured, said Rass. The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake was centered about 33 kilometers (20 miles) from Gaziantep, a major city and provincial capital. It was centered 18kilometers (11 miles) deep, and a strong 6.7 aftershock rumbled about 10 minutes later.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-INP