Turkey hit by dangerous earthquakes only 2 weeks after the first!

New earthquake hits turkey

A 6.3 magnitude earthquake rocked Turkey’s Hatay province Monday, two weeks after the region was devastated by massive temblors and a series of strong aftershocks, injuring or trapping people inside already-damaged buildings. "The new tremblor has unsettled families and communities who’ve already had their sense of security shaken to the core," Jenelle Eli, a global spokesperson for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, told USA TODAY from Geneva. 

Panicked jump from buildings

In northwest Syria, aid workers with the nonprofit Union of Medical Care and Relief Organizations-USA reported at least 94 injuries and several collapsed structures, with a number of people hurt after jumping from buildings.

"Most of the injuries are a result of people panicking," said Najah Allouch, a spokesperson for the Minnesota-based group. "The latest information we have is that eight people jumped and were injured out of fear of their buildings collapsing. Luckily, they were only injured."

Deaths, injuries still being tallied

In the Turkish city of Adana, eyewitness Alejandro Malaver said people left homes for the streets, carrying blankets into their cars. Malaver said everyone is really scared and that “no one wants to get back into their houses.”

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan reportedly visited the region earlier Monday. Erdogan said around 1.6 million people are currently being housed in temporary shelters.

"We’re hearing reports of damage and loved ones separated and so the nightmare of the past few weeks is starting over again for some residents," Eli told USA TODAY.

Hatay province is on the Mediterranean coast, bordered by Syria to the south and east. The province was slammed by the Feb. 6 quakes that Turkish officials say killed more than 41,000 people in their country alone. Several thousand people also died in Syria as a result of the quakes, which injured tens of thousands of people across the two nations and left hundreds of thousands homeless.

US PROVIDES AID: Secretary of State Blinken toured Turkey’s earthquake zone, pledged $100M in aid.

New damage worsens existing humanitarian disaster

Authorities are warning the disaster areas could be hit by a cholera epidemic, compounding the already dire risks facing displaced residents.

Many people are living in temporary shelters with poor access to hygiene, which raises concerns for the spread of infectious diseases. Syria was already facing a cholera outbreak, and a vaccination campaign to curb its spread was halted by the quake.

Additionally, millions are now living without permanent shelter or access to preventative medicine or treatment for ongoing disease like diabetes, because resources are focused on acute and disaster care.

"Restoring access to essential health and water services is crucial to prevent outbreaks and save lives," said Eli, the spokesperson for the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

Source: The Associated Press