Turkish government stops search of survivors of Aegean Sea earthquake off Izmir

Saturday, November 7, 2020

On Wednesday, the Tuskish government declared they were officially ending the search of survivors of the earthquake in the Aegean Sea. Reports said at least 116 people died due to this earthquake, while the number of casualties rose to at least 1,035 in Turkey and about 19 in Greece.

USGS' map of impact.
Image: USGS.

On the Greek island of Samos, two people died when a wall collapsed. The disaster caused buildings on Samos and in the west coast city of Izmir, Turkey, to collapse or be severely damaged. The earthquake also caused a "mini tsunami" to flood some streets of Samos and Izmir.

In Izmir, Turkey, a building collapsed.
Image: Voice of America.

The earthquake occurred on Friday with its epicentre in the Aegean Sea near Samos. Turkey's Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency reported the magnitude of the earthquake was 6.6 and, as of Wednesday, 1885 aftershocks had occurred since the earthquake. The US Geological Survey reported it was of 7.0 magnitude.

Local officials said on Saturday, about 20 buildings collapsed. Early reports suggested police and people used simple tools such as chainsaws to rescue people who were trapped.

Turkey and Greece had earlier had poor relations over disputed resources in the Mediterranean, but the leaders of the two countries spoke by telephone on Friday night, and publicly expressed their willingness to help each other.


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