BAKU, Azerbaijan, February 20. Rescuers of Azerbaijan's Ministry of Emergency Situations handed over the gold and jewelry found under the rubble in the Turkish province of Hatay, severely damaged by the earthquake, to the local police, Trend reports via the ministry.
Following the instructions of Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev, rescue forces of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Azerbaijan continue search and rescue operations to eliminate the consequences of the strong earthquake in the fraternal country. Since February 17, a group of rescuers sent from the ministry has started working in the Hatay province, which was seriously damaged by the earthquake.
As a result of the operations carried out by the ministry, 53 people were pulled out alive from the rubble, and the bodies of 774 dead were found.
An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.7 hit southeastern Türkiye on Feb. 6, 2023. The earthquake occurred at a depth of seven kilometers in the Pazarcik region of Kahramanmaras Province. The provinces of Hatay, Gaziantep, Kilis, Osmaniye, Malatya, Adiyaman, Sanliurfa, Diyarbakir, Adana and Kahramanmaras were subjected to severe destruction.
The quake’s epicenter was located 26 km away from the city of Gaziantep with a population of about 1.06 million.
As many as 41,020 people died, following the earthquake in Türkiye.