At 4:17 am local time today (February 6) a M7.8 earthquake struck near the city of Gaziantep, affecting a widespread region of southern Turkey and northern Syria. Approximately 9 hours later, a second M7.5 magnitude occurred near Ekinözü, 95 kilometers northeast of the first earthquake. A number of significant aftershocks followed both events. Reports from the region indicate thousands of buildings have suffered major damage or collapse, and the fatalities measure in the thousands. The EERI community extends its sympathy to the victims as rescue and relief work continues.
EERI is currently monitoring the situation from media reports and notes from colleagues in the impacted region as part of our Learning from Earthquakes (LFE) Program. An event page for this earthquake has been established on the LFE website here, including links to World Housing Encyclopedia resources, event pages and virtual clearinghouses for previous earthquakes in Turkey, and selected media reports. More resources will be added as they become available.
If you have information to share, are part of an organization that is planning to conduct reconnaissance, or wish to be updated on opportunities to participate in LFE activities responding to this earthquake, please sign up via the Google form here.
For more background, visit the USGS pages below:
- M7.8 Executive Summary and PAGER (red)
- M7.5 Executive Summary and PAGER (orange)
More information will be shared about LFE's response as it develops.
