Turkey: 1,000 People Feared Dead in Van Quake

A massive earthquake with a magnitude of 7.2 hit eastern Turkey a few hours ago. Up to 1,000 people could be feared dead from the quake, which hit Ercis, in the mountainous province of Van close to the Iranian border, the hardest.

On Twitter, users are checking on loved ones and exchanging updates on the toll as well as humanitarian and rescue efforts.

Selin shares live pictures from quake hit Van, taken from news footage on television:

@Selintellect ^[2]: Live pictures from #Van in Turkey #earthquake

In follow up tweets, she brings us closer to the devastation:

@Selintellect: CNN TURK is currently showing live pictures of a collapsed 8 storey apartment, estimated 50-90 people stuck in the rubble #Van

She adds:

@Selintellect ^[3]: Man crying on his knees “My wife and my 4-month baby are there, my wife and baby” – #Van

Selin continues:

@Selintellect: Local men in #Van have organised themselves some with shovels some with bare hands, digging into the rubble to find earthquake victims

The toll, though not final, continues to rise.

@Selintellect ^[4]: 10 dead, 60 injured so far in 7.3 earthquake, in Ercis district of #Van

@Selintellect: 80 buildings in total have collapsed in Ercis disctrict of #Van, death toll is expected to increase rapidly #Turkey

Ruwayda Mustafah says the toll could be in multiples.

@RuwaydaMustafah ^[5]: 10 confirmed dead but at least a 1000 are expected to be. Many are stuck inside buildings + dozens injured #earthquake #Turkey

This figure is confirmed by news agencies.

Turkish Esra Dogramaci explains:

@EsraD ^[6]: Van is mostly fine but phones are down. Very few buildings have collapsed. It's Ercis, a district, which has suffered big damage.

And she adds:

@EsraD ^[7]: Turkish Red crescent sending 1162 tents, 1000 heaters, 4250 blankets, 500 supply kits #deprem #Van #earthquake

Quoting initial estimates, she tweets:

@EsraD ^[8]: 25-30 building reportedly collapsed including 1 student dormitory #Turkey #earthquake #deprem

JYJTurkey reminds us:

@JYJTurkey ^[9]: Unfortunately there aren't enough teams in #van to help people out, so everyone is waiting for help from other city's. #prayforTurkey

Meanwhile, people around the world are worried for loved ones.

NPR's Andy Carvin tweets:

@acarvin ^[10]: So worried for my friend in Van RT @richardengelnbc: #Turkey, hearing many dead in quake near van in the east. Hundreds. phones in area out

On YouTube, user Onur1301 shares a video of the moment the quake hit Van: