Turkey Prepares for Possible Istanbul Earthquake

Turkish authorities are "seriously preparing" on the possible scenario of a magnitude 7.5 earthquake in Istanbul - Turkey's largest city and economic hub.

Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu made such pronouncement in a televised interview Sunday a deadly magnitude 6.8 earthquake hit Elazig and Malatya.

"We [are expecting] a [magnitude] 7.5 earthquakes in Istanbul. We are seriously running on the possible situation of the earthquake," he told broadcaster CNN Türk.

Government agencies, according to Soylu, set up regular meetings between 28 working groups to prepare for the event of a magnitude 7.5 quake.

The Interior Minister noted that attending matters from what to do to protect national treasures in the Topkapi Palace to the wishes of the citizens in the meeting places is a "very complicated study."

According to the Turkish authorities, Friday's disaster killed at least 38 people - 34 in Elazig and 4 in Malatya - and injured more than 1,600.

Soylu said rescue operations are being conducted since late Sunday; however, rescuers have been still searching for three people in Elazig - about 550km (342 miles) east of the capital, Ankara. The teams reached that the disaster area three hours after the earthquake happened was included, Soylu added.

"We are still hopeful; we haven't lost hope," he said.

Those rescued included a 35-year-old woman and her infant daughter within the Mustafa Pasa district of Elazig. Rescuers who heard their screams took several hours to get them in freezing temperatures, state media said.

Rescue employees in a nearby neighborhood stood on mountains of debris where the earthquake had broken up an apartment building in half. The rescuers dug through using buckets, blowing whistles when they needed silence to listen for trapped people.

Turkey's AFAD disaster authority said rescue groups supported by thousands of emergency employees from different provinces and by hundreds of volunteers pulled 45 people below the rubble because of the earthquake.

Support for victims

Speaking on Saturday during his visit to Elazig and Malatya, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said steel-framed homes might be built for the displaced residents.

The Turkish President said on Sunday that new and permanent homes would also be supplied soon. He said the government "do not have the luxury of being slow," adding that they "no longer allow" any delays.

AFAD sent more than 10,400 tents, 17,000 beds, 37,000 blankets, heaters, and food supplies to affected regions. AFAD had received 7 million lire ($1.18m) from a public donation campaign, according to Soylu.

The company stated 1,521 buildings were broken, which includes 645 heavily damaged and seventy-six collapsed structures. In a statement, it said it had transferred 3 million lire ($504.five) in emergency aid to each of the municipalities in Elazig and Malatya.

It warned residents now not to go into damaged buildings because of the hazard of collapse and similarly aftershocks. It stated there had been 844 damaged buildings.

Turkey is known for having strong earthquakes. More than 17,000 people were killed in August 1999, while a 7.6 magnitude quake struck Izmit, a city southeast of Istanbul. Another tremor hit the eastern city of Van in 2011 that killed more than 500 people.