The death toll continues to rise following earthquakes that devastated Turkey and Syria as rescuers continue their search for survivors. A Balinese woman, her Turkish husband and their baby were sadly among those who did not make it.
Indonesian Ambassador to Turkey Lalu Muhammad Iqbal said today that the Indonesian victim has been identified as Nia Marlinda from Bali. Nia, who lived in the city of Kahramanmaras, was found dead under the rubble along with her husband and their baby, who was only one year old.
Lalu said that the embassy has been in touch with Nia’s family in Indonesia. Nia, along with her husband and their child, will be buried sometime today in Kahramanmaras.
A 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck near the Turkish city of Gaziantep in the morning of Feb. 6. Twelve hours later, a second quake, registering 7.5 in magnitude, struck 80 miles to the north. The two quakes leveled countless buildings in southeastern Turkey and neighboring Syria.
Per this article’s publication, the combined death toll in the two countries has reached at least 9,600.
According to the embassy, approximately 500 Indonesians reside in the southeastern Turkish regions devastated by the quake. Some of them have been displaced, as their apartments were among scores of buildings that collapsed from the quake’s immense destructive power.
“As of Feb. 7, 10 Indonesian nationals were reported hurt, four of whom are receiving medical help while the other six are being evacuated to Ankara for treatment,” Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Teuku Faizasyah said in a press briefing yesterday.
