Earthquake in eastern Van province

VAN (A.A) - Damage assessment has almost been completed in Ercis town of the eastern province of Van which was hit by a massive earthquake measuring 7.2 on Richter scale on October 23. According to preliminary reports of engineers of Turkish Prime Ministry Disaster & Emergency Management Directorate (AFAD), 5,497 households were severely damaged, while 9,060 had minor damages in Ercis town of Van. The engineers assessed 14,557 of 18,424 residences in 12 of 13 neighborhoods in Ercis. Meanwhile, technical teams took samples from buildings under the supervision of a prosecutor in Ercis; and the results would be clear within the next 3-4 days. 601 people were killed and 4,152 others were wounded in the quake. 188 people were pulled alive out of the debris.