Syria and Turkey’s Earthquake Aftermath

Anna Lucia Arguello, Staff Writer

Turkey and Syria’s destructive earthquake was all over the news about a month ago, but since then things have seemingly calmed down. The death toll was finalized, and support sent leaving the countries affected to recover quietly. Unfortunately, that wouldn’t be the end of the story. A second massive quake struck the same region this Monday, hitting a 5.2 on the Richter Scale. Another person was killed on top of the previous 50,000 deaths, there were also around 69 reported injuries. The public has been warned to not enter buildings in the affected areas for fear of an aftershock, leaving many without housing or resources. In fact, around 100,000 buildings have been destroyed with millions left homeless. Syria is once again struggling to receive aid due to divided areas of control, although the government has somewhat mended relations with other countries’ governments. Meanwhile, Turkey is re-examining common building practices to help prevent future damage. Turkey and Syria were already struggling before the quakes. Now, the countries are in near crisis. The headlines may disappear within a week or two, but the damage will take much longer than that to repair.