Hatay is the southernmost Turkish province of the country and one of the hardest hit by the earthquakes this Monday. It shares a border with Syria, and has a long coastline. More than 1.6 million people live in the area, 248,000 in the city of Alexandretta. Drones have captured images of the destruction. From a bird’s eye view, the image is overwhelming. There are entire neighborhoods in ruins and thousands of buildings and houses turned into rubble.
The devastating balance of the disaster rises to more than 11,000 dead and almost 50,000 injured (some 1,200 dead and 2,200 injured in Syrian areas controlled by the authorities). Turkey has reported that 6,444 buildings have been destroyed.
Tents of the Emergency and Disaster Management Authority (AFAD), under the Turkish Interior Ministry, are spread throughout the parks. Rescuers from all over the world are scrambling to search for survivors among the disaster. AFAD has confirmed that more than 96,600 agents, workers from non-governmental organizations, search and rescue teams and volunteers are deployed in the affected areas.
Source: Lasexta
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