Turkish Airlines to evacuate 30,000 more people from earthquake zone on Wednesday

By Tuba Sahin

ANKARA (AA) - Flag carrier Turkish Airlines is planning to evacuate 30,000 people from southern Türkiye after the region was hit by powerful earthquakes, an official announced.

"The evacuation of our citizens from the earthquake zone continues – Adana, Gaziantep, Elazig, Sanliurfa, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Malatya, Kahramanmaras. Yesterday we carried 19,050 people, and today we plan to evacuate 30,000 more," Yahya Ustun, Turkish Airlines’ senior vice president for media relations, said on Twitter.

At least 8,574 people were killed and 49,133 others injured when two strong earthquakes struck early Monday, according to the latest official figures.

The magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 quakes, centered in the Kahramanmaras province, struck 10 provinces and affected more than 13 million people.

The earthquakes were also felt in several neighboring countries in the region, including Lebanon and Syria.