CityLab Daily: A Portrait of the City Hardest-Hit by Turkey’s Earthquake
Also today: US traffic safety push delivers $800 million for street fixes, and why Asian Americans are moving to NYC’s East Harlem.
A view of a destroyed apartment in the Cukurova district of Adana, Turkey, after the earthquake on Feb. 6, 2023.
Photographer: Omer Yildiz/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
A massive 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck near the border of Turkey and Syria early Monday, leveling buildings and leaving more than 2,000 people dead across the region, with the toll still mounting from its powerful aftershocks. The quake’s epicenter was near Gaziantep, a city of more than 2 million people — including hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees.
Just 60 miles from Aleppo, Gaziantep was already one of Turkey’s fastest-growing urban areas when it became a humanitarian-aid hub and a magnet for Aleppians seeking work during the Syrian civil war. Those who settled have since reshaped the city to adapt it to their needs, building schools and opening shops that are reminiscent of the ones at home. The influx of refugees has also put a considerable strain on public resources, forcing the city to adapt its infrastructure, housing plans and other services to serve both locals and migrants in need. But the city’s urban resilience comes in part from the fact that it shares “a deep, common history and cultural features” with its neighbor. Revisit our story from contributors Stefania D'Ignoti and Abdulsalam Jarroud. Read more on CityLab: Victims of a Forgotten War, Syrians Build a New Aleppo Next Door