The earthquake, which was also felt in Lebanon and Israel, has killed more than 2,300 people, Turkish and Syrian officials said, and left thousands more injured, according to the Associated Press.
According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the epicenter of the earthquake was in southern Turkey, 20 miles away from the city of Gaziantep. The Governor of the Gaziantep province wrote on Twitter that the quake was “felt strongly” in the region.
The earthquake was followed by a 6.7-magnitude aftershock 11 minutes later and more than a dozen aftershocks have been recorded.
Videos and images from the area show rescuers trying to pull survivors from the rubble.
Roughly nine hours after the quake struck, a second 7.5-magnitude earthquake hit in southern Turkey near the northern border of Syria, according to USGS.
Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority said at least 1,498 were killed and 8,533 others were injured in the areas of of Kahramanmaraş, Gaziantep, Şanlıurfa, Diyarbakır, Adana, Adıyaman, Osmaniye, Hatay, Kilis and Malatya.
More than 2,800 buildings were also destroyed, according to Turkey’s disaster management agency.
“Because the debris removal efforts are continuing in many
