Officially 60 people reported dead, it is possible that the figure rises to 1,000 after a strong earthquake of 7.2 magnitude that this Sunday the province of Van, eastern Turkey, according to preliminary calculations Seismological Centre Kandilli Bosphorus University in Istanbul.
In a press conference, experts corrected the initial data upward of 6.6 degrees on the Richter scale and claimed that the quake was "very near the surface", about 5 miles deep, so at the heart "felt like an earthquake of between 8 and 9 degrees."
Kandilli Seismograph Center Istanbul, Turkey's largest, reported that the earthquake occurred at 10:41 GMT (5:41 am Colombia).
One expert, Gördü Hasan said that after the initial tremor recorded twenty replicas of between 3.5 and 5.5 degrees, and warned that more quakes could occur up to 5.7 degrees.
The mayor of the city of Van, Bekir Kaya, appealed to maintain "cold blood" after the panic would spread among the population and many streets were jammed by residents trying to flee the area, making it difficult to arrival of ambulances.
Kaya recognized that "several buildings" have collapsed in the provincial capital.
According to Turkish TV, Airport Van also suffered major damage, so that had to divert flights to Erzurum, more than 400 miles away.
The Red Crescent said that due to the difficult terrain, is finding it difficult to access the villages most affected by the earthquake.
Turkish Deputy Prime Minister, Besir Atataly, said all the institutions of state are on alert and that there will be a focal point in Van, who will attend the country's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in the coming hours.
The earthquake occurred near the surface and its epicenter was located in the village of Tabanli, in the eastern province of Van, bordering Iran, though, because the power was felt in all the neighboring provinces and even in northern Iraq and Armenia.