At least 66 aftershocks were felt in southeastern Türkiye and the surrounding region after a powerful magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck Pazarcık district of southern Kahramanmaraş province Monday morning at 4.17 a.m. (0117GMT), Türkiye’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) has said.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan talked to the governors of Adana, Malatya, Gaziantep, Diyarbakır, Hatay, Adıyaman, Osmaniye and Şanlıurfa on the phone and received information about the post-earthquake situation and search and rescue activities.
''I convey my best wishes to all our citizens who were affected by the earthquake that occurred in Kahramanmaraş and was felt in many parts of our country. All our relevant units are on alert under the coordination of AFAD,'' President Erdoğan wrote on Twitter.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's wife, Emine Erdoğan, wished mercy to those who lost their lives in the 7.7 magnitude earthquake and wished healing to the injured.
In her post on her social media account, Emine Erdoğan said, "We have a fire in our hearts with the news of the earthquake. 'Get well soon' to our country and our nation. All relevant units of our state are on the alert. I hope to overcome this disaster with the least damage, I wish God's mercy on our citizens who lost their lives, and a speedy recovery to our wounded."
Many teams from the surrounding provinces, including the fire and search and rescue teams of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IBB) and the surrounding district municipalities, have dispatched their teams to the earthquake zone. Search and rescue teams gathered at Istanbul Airport and Sabiha Gökçen Airport first started their dispatch to earthquake zones with scheduled flights.
Istanbul Governor Ali Yerlikaya said, "We are at AFAD right after the earthquake. 80 AFAD officers, 27 accredited municipalities and NGOs, 968 Search and Rescue volunteers, 4 K9 dogs, 2 trucks and aid materials set out from Istanbul to the earthquake zone in the first place. Our condolences. I wish a speedy recovery to the injured.''
Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Fatih Dönmez stated that after the earthquake felt in Kahramanmaraş and other provinces, all personnel in the region affiliated to the ministry are on alert, and accompany the works carried out under the coordination of governorships and AFAD.
"I hope to overcome the disaster with the least damage as a nation, and convey our best wishes to our citizens,'' he said.