76 fatalities and 440 injuries resulting from a significant earthquake in Turkey

A major earthquake in Turkey and Syria has resulted in the deaths of at least 76 people and the injury of 440, according to the Turkish disaster management agency AFAD.

The earthquake occurred in several provinces in the south of the country and caused widespread panic and destruction as buildings were toppled. Search and rescue teams were dispatched to the affected areas and Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu urged people not to enter damaged buildings due to safety concerns.

Turkey has a history of earthquakes due to its location on major fault lines, and the country saw 18,000 fatalities from powerful earthquakes in 1999.

The earthquake also caused seismic activity in neighboring countries such as Lebanon where many residents of Beirut left their homes and took to the streets or drove in their cars away from buildings and Syria, with buildings collapsing in cities such as Aleppo and Hama.