Melis Görsoy, who is doing an internship in Turkey, ran out of the apartment building at night with her husband. The next day, the same escape was ahead.
For the first time Melis Görsoy and his spouse woke up last night at 04:15 in Alanya, Turkey. The exact time is etched in Görsoy’s mind, because the bed swayed very strongly. The tremor lasted at least more than 30 seconds.
– We wondered if we should go out. These always happen from time to time, but now the earthquake lasted an exceptionally long time.
Just ten minutes later, there was another tremor that lasted at least ten seconds.
– The whole building swayed, Görsoy describes.
Information about the earthquake was found on Twitter
Görsoy and his spouse took the cat with them and went out. Görsoy’s spouse lost several acquaintances in the devastating 1999 earthquake in Turkey, and he wanted them out of the building quickly. The couple lives on the fifth floor of an apartment building, and there is no elevator in the building.
Outside, the couple was reading Twitter and found out that a strong earthquake hit southern Turkey early Monday morning. The earthquake has killed more than 1,900 people in Turkey and Syria, and the number of victims is feared to continue to rise.
Although the worst earthquake area is about 500 kilometers away from Alanya, the earthquake was also felt there.
Melis Görsoy says that according to the instructions, when an earthquake hits, you must be outside for at least an hour before returning inside, unless the house has been damaged.
The aftershocks were disturbing
The couple went back inside. The tremors continued during the day on Monday.
– I was at home working when at one o’clock the building started shaking again for at least ten seconds. I first ran under the stone table, but then I thought I might have time to run outside, Melis Görsoy describes.
Görsoy ran five floors down to the street again. There were more people on the street now because everyone had read the news.
– The second earthquake today has caused more anxiety and fear than yesterday. Usually the aftershocks are not this strong, says Görsoy.
The couple decided to go away for a couple of days to their friends in a private house.
– It’s easier to get out and there is less risk of falling.
In a couple of months, Melis Görsoy will return to Finland together with her husband.