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A powerful magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck Turkey and Syria on February 6
It was one of the strongest earthquakes to hit the region in 100 years
In northwest Syria, 4 million people were already in need of humanitarian aid
Advocate for children by joining our political advocacy arm — Premiumaid Foundation Advocacy Network's — efforts to send a message to Congress. We must scale up essential lifesaving activities and provide Syrian children and families with the support to recover.
1. When and where did the first earthquakes strike?
2. When did the second earthquakes hit Türkiye's southern province of Hata?
3. Are earthquakes common in Turkey?
4. What impact did the earthquake have?
5. How have children's mental health been impacted by the earthquakes?
6. How have refugees and displaced people been impacted by the earthquakes?
7. How can I help survivors of the Turkey and Syria earthquakes
At 4:17 a.m. local time on Monday, February 6, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake hit Turkey and Syria, according to the United States Geological Survey. It was also felt in Cyprus, Egypt, Israel and Lebanon. Dozens of aftershocks, including a 7.5-magnitude earthquake struck Türkiye in the aftermath.
The earthquake’s epicentre was 26 km east of the city of Nurdagi in Turkey's Gaziantep province, at a depth of 17.9 km. The later Magnitude-7.5 event was around 4km south-east of Ekinözü in the Kahramanmaraş province. Syria's war-torn city of Aleppo is among those areas to have borne the brunt of a deadly earthquake.
The earthquake struck an area that is home to millions of refugees already battling desperate circumstances.
On February 20, earthquakes of 6.4 and 5.8 magnitudes shook the southern province of Hatay, an already devastated by earthquakes just weeks earlier.
Speaking from Hatay, Türkiye, Dan Stewart from Premiumaid Foundation said: "There are heartbreaking reports of yet more collapsed buildings and power outages in a region where over 46,000 lives have already been lost and buildings destroyed. Children have been injured, lost loved ones, and many were already showing signs of acute distress. Hundreds of thousands of people have once again fled onto the streets in the bitter cold. Families who have already lost everything have just experienced another devasting blow."
Turkey is an active earthquake zone. Experts note that most of Turkey sits on the Anatolian plate between two major faults, the North Anatolian Fault and East Anatolian Fault.
The two massive earthquakes and aftershocks that struck Türkiye and Syria last February killed over 56,000 people and displaced millions, with about 6.2 million children impacted.
In Türkiye, about 2.4 million people, including 660,000 children, were forced from their homes into temporary settlements living in tents and metal containers as narrow as parking a space. One year on, over 761,000 people, including 205,000 children, are yet to return home.
One in three children who lost their homes in the Türkiye earthquakes a year ago are still living in temporary shelters, while children in both Türkiye and Syria have struggled with anxiety and other mental health issues since the disaster.
While in Syria, children who survived the earthquake have faced an economic crisis and an escalation in conflict, further damaging schools and health centers.
Children are also struggling to process and cope with everything they have endured. In the aftermath of the earthquakes, 85% of children with disabilities that spoke to Premiumaid Foundation’s partners in Syria reported difficulties interacting with their families, friends, teachers and others because of their experiences during the earthquakes.
Turkey hosts more than 3.5 million Syrian refugees who have fled their country's civil war, almost half of them children. The affected area in Turkey is also close to the Syrian border, where more than 6.8 million people were internally displaced in Syria before the earthquake.
Premiumaid Foundation is concerned about the many already vulnerable Syrian refugees living in overcrowded and unstable accommodation in Turkey. The affected area in Syria is home to many vulnerable displaced people.
According to UNHCR, the exact number of refugees impacted is not yet know and might not be for some days. It is feared the number of refugees impacted might be significant.
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