site.btaThree-Storey Building in Malatya Collapses, Killing One

A three-storey building in Battalgazi, Malatya province, collapsed Friday night, killing one person, Turkish state television TRT-Haber reported. The building had been badly hit by the February 6 earthquake.

Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) rescue teams undertook searches for people in the rubble. Ambulances, police and firefighters were sent to the area. Shortly after that, the rescue teams found the body of a man under the ruins.

Four persons engaged in selling scrap had been in the building at the time of the collapse, said Malatya Governor, Hulusi Sahin, who arrived on the scene. Three had managed to escape, but one had unfortunately failed, he added.

Some 35,000 buildings in Malatya were badly damaged by the February 6 quake and could collapse at the slightest tremor, Sahin said. Their demolition will take time and entering them is life-threatening, he added, calling on the people to stay away from such structures. 

According to official data, over 50,000 people died and some 115,000 were wounded in the destructive February 6 quakes in Turkiye.