Three airports have been closed in Turkey following several earthquakes this week that devastated the country and killed more than 5 000 people. A state of emergency is in operation.
According to the Independent, the country first felt the effect of a 7,8-magnitude earthquake early on Monday morning (February 6). This was soon followed by a 7,5-magnitude quake. At least 20 aftershocks have been felt following the second earthquake, the strongest of which measured 6,6-magnitude.
The earthquakes have left a trail of destruction across southeast Turkey and northern Syria, with tremors having been reported as far as Cairo.
According to Simple Flying,the three Turkish airports forced to close are:
*Adana Sakirpasa Airport, which is believed to have sustained damage to its terminal buildings, although no official reports have been released yet.
*Hatay Airport, which had to close after its runway was split in half by the earthquakes, and
*Gaziantep Oğuzeli International Airport which suffered only minor damage but has been closed for civilian flights.
In total, nine provinces in Turkey have been significantly affected by the earthquakes, according to iNews. These are Hatay, Osmaniye, Adıyaman, Diyarbakır, Sanliurfa, Kahramanmaras, Kilis, Adana, and Malatya. The epicentre of the quake was near the city of Gaziantep at a depth of 17,9km.
Travel News understands from an inside source that the areas affected are not typically visited by the South African tourist market.
Bad weather, some flights cancelled
In addition to the disruption caused by the earthquakes, snowstorms in the country have disrupted air services and rescue efforts. Turkish Airlines posted an update on its website stating that some of its flights to and from Istanbul Airport and Sabiha Gökçen Airport from February 5-8 had been cancelled due to the severe weather conditions. Agents and their clients are advised to check the status of their flights. While the TK flights from South Africa may not be cancelled, there is the possibility that the onward flight might be cancelled due to bad weather.
