Map of Turkey reveals the place huge 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck

A robust 7.8 magnitude earthquake has hit southeast Turkey, toppling buildings and leaving a path of catastrophe in seven Turkish provinces and northern Syria, with tremors felt so far as Cairo.

The high-magnitude tremor struck at 4.17am native time on Monday in southeastern Turkey close to the Syrian border, in accordance with the US Geological Survey.

The epicentre of the quake was close to the town of Gaziantep at a depth of 17.9km, impacting round seven provinces in Turkey and a big space in northern Syria.

Greater than 1,650 individuals have been confirmed useless in Turkey alone, taking the entire tally of deaths together with Syria above 2,600.

Mr Erdogan tweeted within the morning that “search and rescue groups have been instantly dispatched” to the areas hit by the quake.

“We hope that we’ll get via this catastrophe collectively as quickly as attainable and with the least injury,” he wrote.

A second earthquake, measuring no less than 7.5 magnitude was later felt in central Turkey.

In the meantime, Not less than 968 individuals have been killed in Syria, in accordance with figures from the Damascus authorities and rescue staff within the northwestern area managed by the opposition.

Most deaths in Turkey have been reported within the province of Kahramanmaras the place the quake epicentre was positioned with toll standing at 70 until 11am native time, in accordance with vice-president Fuat Oktay.

Mr Oktay stated robust tremors have been additionally felt in Osmaniye, Sanliurf, Diyarbakir and Adiyaman the place 20, 18, 14 and 13 individuals are confirmed useless respectively.

There are fears the demise toll will rise sharply within the coming hours.

Residents on either side of the border escaped their houses on a cold winter night time, startled out of their sleep by the early morning earthquake as buildings have been levelled and highly effective aftershocks persevered.

The quake closely broken Gaziantep’s most famed landmark, its historic fort perched atop a hill within the centre of the town. Components of the fortresses’ partitions and watch towers have been levelled and different components have been closely broken, photos from the town confirmed.

Buildings have been reported collapsed in a cross-border area extending from Syria’s cities of Aleppo and Hama to Turkey‘s Diyarbakir, greater than 200 miles to the north-east, with 900 buildings collapsing simply in Turkey’s Gaziantep and Kahramanmaras provinces.

In north-west Syria, the quake added new woes to the opposition-held enclave centred on the province of Idlib, which has been beneath siege for years, with frequent Russian and authorities air strikes.

The territory is determined by a circulate of support from close by Turkey for all the pieces from meals to medical provides.

The opposition’s Syrian Civil Defence described the scenario there as “disastrous”, including that whole buildings have collapsed and individuals are trapped beneath the rubble.

In Damascus, buildings shook and many individuals went right down to the streets in worry.

The quake jolted residents in Lebanon from beds, shaking buildings for about 40 seconds. Many residents of Beirut left their houses and took to the streets or drove of their vehicles away from buildings.

Not less than 20 aftershocks adopted, some hours later throughout daylight, the strongest measuring 6.6, Turkish authorities stated.

Individuals attempting to depart the quake-stricken areas precipitated site visitors jams in Turkey, hampering efforts of emergency groups attempting to succeed in the affected areas.

Authorities urged residents to not take to the roads.

Mosques across the area have been being opened up as a shelter for individuals unable to return to broken houses amid temperatures that hovered round freezing.

Rescuers and locals proceed to search for survivors via mountains of concrete and metallic particles as cranes rushed individuals on stretchers.

Extra reporting by companies