President Erdoğan Commemorated the Losers of the 17 August Earthquake on the 27th Anniversary

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan shared a post on his social media account on the 27th anniversary of the 17 August 1999 Marmara Earthquake. Erdogan said in the post: "On the 27th anniversary of the 17 August 1999 Marmara Earthquake, I pray for God's mercy on those who lost their lives, and I express my condolences to the families and relatives of all those who lost their lives, whose pain remains in our hearts as much as the first day." he said.

The 17 August 1999 Marmara Earthquake is known as one of the biggest disasters experienced by Türkiye. The earthquake, with a magnitude of 7.4, occurred in the center of Gölcük district of Kocaeli at 03.02 in the morning of August 17, 1999. The earthquake, which lasted 45 seconds, caused great destruction in Kocaeli, Yalova, Sakarya, Istanbul and Düzce.

While 17 thousand 480 people lost their lives in the earthquake, 43 thousand 953 people were injured. Approximately 200 thousand people were left homeless, 66 thousand 441 residences and 10 thousand 901 workplaces were destroyed. While nearly 16 million people were affected by the earthquake at different levels, damage was detected in 285 thousand 211 residences and 42 thousand 902 workplaces.

454 people lost their lives in Istanbul. This number increased to 981 with the deaths among the injured brought to hospitals in the city from Yalova, Düzce and Gölcük.