UPDATE - Death toll from powerful twin earthquakes in southern Türkiye rises to 42,310

ADDS TURKISH INTERIOR MINISTER'S REMARKS

By Dilara Hamit

ANKARA (AA) - At least 42,310 people have been killed by two strong earthquakes that jolted southern Türkiye on Feb. 6, the country’s disaster management agency said Tuesday.

The Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) said the quakes, centered in Pazarcik and Elbistan districts of Kahramanmaras province, were followed by 7,184 aftershocks.

The magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 quakes struck 10 other provinces – Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Hatay, Gaziantep, Malatya, Kilis, Osmaniye, Elazig and Sanliurfa.

More than 13 million people have been affected by the devastating quakes.

Several countries in the region, including Syria and Lebanon, also felt the strong tremors that struck Türkiye in the space of fewer than 10 hours.

Teams set up a total of 301,289 tents and 6,375 containers in the earthquake zone that were dispatched by ministries and relevant institutions as well as other countries and international organizations, it added.

A total of 14,740 local and international search and rescue personnel are currently working in the field, AFAD noted.

Four mobile social service centers were assigned to disaster psychological support efforts in Kahramanmaras, Hatay, Osmaniye and Malatya. A total of 698,244 people received psychosocial support, with 497,093 in the earthquake zone and 201,151 outside the quake zone.

Separately, Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu announced at a press briefing that at least six people were killed and 562 others wounded with 18 in critical condition after a fresh earthquake jolted Türkiye’s southernmost province of Hatay late Monday.

*Merve Aydogan contributed to this story.