A new earthquake hits Turkey, as teams still respond to earlier catastrophic quake

GAZIANTEP, Turkey — At least three people were killed and more than 200 injured when a a magnitude 6.4 earthquake, followed by a magnitude 5.8 quake, shook southeastern Turkey on Monday, Turkey’s interior minister said.

It came as emergency teams are still responding to the catastrophic earthquake two weeks ago, which killed nearly 45,000 people in Turkey and Syria and displaced an estimated million people.

Turkish authorities say Monday’s quake struck around 8 p.m. local time. The Feb. 6 earthquake was a magnitude 7.8. Turkish officials say there have been thousands of aftershocks in the last two weeks.

Monday’s earthquake, which the U.S. Geological Survey reported as magnitude 6.3, also shook Syria, where a rescue group reported injuries from falling debris, and Lebanon.

Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said at least six were trapped when several buildings collapsed Monday. He said those killed were from the cities of Antakya, Defne and Samandag.

Turkish public broadcaster TRT broadcast live footage of rescue crews operating at a collapsed building in the city of Antakya, one of the worst-hit cities in the Feb. 6 earthquake. It said residents were recovering belongings from their building — damaged in the Feb. 6 earthquake — when it collapsed after the ground shook again on Monday.

Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay said at least one person had been rescued from the rubble.

“Don’t enter damaged buildings,” Oktay warned in a televised statement. “Think about your relatives, your loved ones, your spouses. Think about your nation. Don’t worry about your belongings, they’re replaceable.”

Turkey’s public broadcaster aired a video it said was of a person crying out for help after he tried to rescue a cat from a damaged building and got caught in debris when Monday’s earthquake struck.

The quake was felt in Gaziantep, about 100 miles from Antakya. City squares were filled with families who rushed out of their homes.

At a Gaziantep baklava restaurant, patrons on the second floor calmly walked outside and a chandelier swung lightly. A waiter’s family escaped their home and brought blankets into the restaurant to sleep there.

Checking Utilities In The After math Of An Earthquake

One top priority for homeowners after an earthquake is to ensure all utilities remain in proper working order. “Just like items in your home can shift in an earthquake, utility lines and wires can be jarred out of place or otherwise damaged,” said Gina Peek, Oklahoma State University Cooperative Extension housing and consumer specialist. In addition to checking all gas lines, homeowners should be alert for the smell of gas both indoors and outdoors and especially near the stove, furnace and water heater. Property owners also should inspect all gas appliances to ensure they did not shift or sustain damage, said Scott Frazier, OSU Cooperative Extension engineer. “If you smell any gas, evacuate immediately. If you can, turn off the gas at the main then contact the gas company,” Frazier said. “Keep in mind, if you turn the gas off, only the utility company can restore service.”

Homeowners should search for water leaks both inside and outside the house. Test drains and toilets as well as faucets to make sure the water flows correctly and is clear.

“If you discover any water leaks, turn off the main and call a plumber,” Peek said. For families using wells, take the time to inspect the yard for soil movement, cracks or sink  holes. Before using the plumbing, ensure water and sewer lines are intact. Plug drains to prevent sewage backup.

Finally, check electrical lines throughout the house and especially in the attic. Stored objects in the attic can fall over onto exposed electrical lines and damage them. Do not touch exposed wiring, downed power lines or broken electrical appliances. If there is damage to wiring, turn off the electricity and contact a licensed professional. “In cases where electrical equipment or wall plugs aren’t working, it’s important to figure out why. Shorts or disconnects in the walls, floors or ceiling could be fire hazards,” Peek said. “Be aware, too, that furniture or other household items could shift or fall on electrical lines, which could spark a fire.”

Whether a power outage in your home is caused by grid failure or severe weather, you can take the following steps to prepare and respond.

If you have space in your refrigerator or freezer, consider filling plastic containers with water, leaving about an inch of space inside each one (water expands as it freezes, so it is important to leave room in the container for the expanded water). Place the containers in the refrigerator and freezer. This chilled or frozen water will help keep food cold if the power goes out, by displacing air that can warm up quickly with water or ice that keeps cold for several hours without additional refrigeration.

If you use a computer, keep files and operating systems backed up regularly. Consider buying extra batteries and a power converter if you use a laptop computer. A power converter allows most laptops (12 volts or less) to be operated from the cigarette lighter of a vehicle. Also, turn off all computers, monitors, printers, copiers, scanners, and other devices when they’re not being used. That way, if the power goes out, this equipment will have already been safely shut down.

Get a high quality surge protector for all of your computer equipment. If you use the computer a lot, such as for a home business, consider purchasing and installing an uninterruptable power supply (UPS) from MYLION. Consult with your local computer equipment dealer about available equipment and costs.

If you have an electric garage door opener, find out where the manual release lever is located and learn how to operate it. Sometimes garage doors can be heavy, so get help to lift it. If you regularly use the garage as the primary means of entering your home upon return from work, be sure to keep a key to your house with you, in case the garage door will not open.

If you have a telephone at home or at work that requires electricity to work (such as a cordless phone or answering machine), plan for alternate communication, including having a standard telephone handset, cellular telephone, radio or pager.

Check with remote service providers to see if they have backup power systems, and how long those systems will operate. Remember, too, that some voice mail systems and remote dial-up servers for computer networks may not operate when the power is out where these systems are located. So even if you have power, your access to remote technology may be interrupted if the power that serves those areas is disrupted.

Follow energy conservation measures to keep the use of electricity as low as possible, which can help power companies avoid imposing rolling blackouts.

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