On February 6, 2023, an earthquake hit Turkey and Syria（土耳其和叙利亚）. It had a magnitude（震级）of 7. 8. By February 14, the earthquake had killed more than 36, 000 people. Tens of thousands of people were also injured.
The earthquake happened in Turkey near its border（边境） with Syria. It was the strongest earthquake to have hit Turkey in more than 80 years. It even caused shaking 8 S far away as Egypt.
Many countries, including China, have sent rescue（救援） teams to Turkoy: But the weather has caused problems. Before the earthquake, Turkey was preparing for a heavy snowstorm. This has made rescue work difficult.
Things are even more serious in Syria. Many of the people there already lived in camps. They lost their homes after the war broke out in the area in 2011. And as a result of the war, it has been very difficult to get help into Syria following the earthquake.
Thousands of buildings in both countries fell down during the earthquake. Some of them are historic sites. Gaziantep Castle, for example, fell down after the earthquake. The site was built by the Roman Empire （罗马帝国）. It has a history of more than 2, 000 years.
