Turkey was rocked by two earthquakes on Monday
A former Premier League football is amongst those trapped under rubber in Turkey after a huge earthquake on Monday left more than 1,000 dead.
Christian Atsu, who formerly played for Chelsea and Newcastle United, was reportedly caught up in the 7.7 magnitude earthquake, The Mirror reported. A second quake also hit the country, measuring 7.5.
🚨🇹🇷 Hatayspor forward Cristian Atsu and director Taner Savut have been left under the rubble after the earthquake in Türkiye.
Search and rescue teams are looking them now, reports @yagosabuncuoglu. pic.twitter.com/S2IqRo46PK
— EuroFoot (@eurofootcom) February 6, 2023
The 65-cap Ghana international joined Super Lig club Hataysport last summer.
Several members of his new team had to be rescued after the earthquake and Atsu is now reported to be amongst those still missing as a search and rescue operation gets underway, the newspaper said.
The club’s sporting director, Taner Savut, is also trapped.
More than 1,300 people have lost their lives in the disaster, with a further 6,000 injured, according to officials.
Other footballers and sportspeople have been caught up in the disaster.
The wife of Hatayspor manager Volkan Demirel shared a tearful message after a massive aftershock hit Turkey’s south hours after the original quake.
“Hatay is in a very bad way,” Zeynep Sever Demirel said in a video shared on social media. A number of her friends were believed to still be trapped under rubble, with fears that more footballers could also be affected by the disaster.
Two hospitals have collapsed in Hatay province. Local football teams seem to be hit hard.
Wife of Hatayspor manager and former Miss Belgium Zeynep Sever Demirel says “Hatay is in a very bad way”. Some of her friends are still trapped. #TurkeyEarthquake pic.twitter.com/NCphdn89Y1
— Liz Cookman (@liz_cookman) February 6, 2023
Turkish goalkeeper Eyup Turkaslan was also among those trapped under rubble, with Yeni Malatyaspor, where Turkaslan plays his football, sharing a photo of the goalkeeper with the caption “Our prayers are with you”.
Dualarımız seninle…😥 pic.twitter.com/7VsNeN4qJa
— Yeni Malatyaspor (@YMSkulubu) February 6, 2023
According to a reporter for Haber Global, footballers from the Marasspor team may have been staying in a hotel destroyed in the aftermath of the quake.
A men’s volleyball team and a girls’ under-14 volleyball team were also reportedly affected, with some survivors being pulled from the rubble, The Mirror reported, and a number of wrestlers are also believed to be trapped.
Top stories:
- More than 200 people killed after 7.8 magnitude earthquake hits Turkey and Syria
- Second major earthquake hits Turkey, according to reports
- Man City charged by Premier League for breaching financial rules
