Under President Ilham Aliyev’s instructions, the rapid response team of Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Emergency Situations (MES) is continuing search and rescue operations in two quake-battered Kahramanmaras and Hatay provinces of Türkiye, the ministry told News.Az.

The rescuers have pulled 53 people alive from the rubble and recovered 80 dead bodies, the ministry added.

At least 41,020 people have been killed by two strong earthquakes that jolted southern Türkiye on February 6.

The magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 quakes were centered in Kahramanmaras and 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 less than 10 hours.

The quakes were followed by over 6,210 aftershocks, the Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) said in a statement.

News.Az