Photo: Anadolu

The city of Nurdağı in the Turkish province of Gaziantep, which was severely damaged due to powerful earthquakes that shook the country on February 6, 2023, will be completely demolished.

According to the Turkish channel NTV, Acting Governor Osman Bilgin said that Nurdagi, located 45 km west of Gaziantep, will be completely demolished and rebuilt. Previously, 40 thousand people lived there.

"We have a house. It will be rebuilt," he said.

Bilgin added that search and rescue work in the rubble areas continues. According to him, 160 hours after powerful earthquakes, an 18-year-old boy was rescued. He was pulled out from under the rubble of an apartment building.

"All our teams are working together. All our teams are making a great contribution. Search and rescue work continues under the rubble in the last 8 houses in Nurdagi," the official stressed.

Around 4 am on February 6, two powerful earthquakes of magnitude over 7 occurred in the southeast of Turkey and the border regions of Syria. After that, there were several more powerful tremors and dozens of aftershocks.

As of the morning of February 13, it was reported that 31,643 people had died in Turkey due to earthquakes, and more than 4,500 people in Syria. Rescuers continue to dismantle the rubble.

Business groups estimate that earthquakes in Turkey will result in losses to the national economy of more than $84 billion, or about 10% of GDP.