Ministry of Health clarifies: 65 injuries due to panic during earthquake, no deaths

Damascus, (ST) – The Ministry of Health announced that 65 minor to moderate injuries , 3 of which required surgery, were recorded due to the earthquake that struck eastern Hama city before midnight yesterday and that no deaths were reported.

The Ministry of Health clarified in a statement that the 65 injuries were caused by panic, stampede and falling. It said that Salamiyah National Hospital also dealt with 67 panic cases.

The ministry made it clear that it turned out that the cause of the death of the elderly woman, who was earlier reported dead due to panic, was natural and it occurred before the earthquake.

Civil sources had earlier reported that an elderly woman died in the village of Al-Raba in the northern countryside of Salamiyah due to severe panic from the earthquake, but later, it was found out that her death was natural and it took place before the earthquake and this was clarified by the Ministry of Health.

The ministry affirmed that all cases of panic and injuries received the necessary medical services in hospitals or during safe transportation through ambulance and emergency system vehicles that were on alert and in full readiness.

Earlier, the director of Salamiyah area, Brigadier General Khaled Al-Amarin, told a SANA reporter that the earthquake caused the shattering of window glass, cracking of some buildings, and some damage to them.

In turn, the director of Salamiyah National Hospital, Dr. Osama Melhem, said in statement to SANA that dozens of people were taken to the hospital with injuries and bruises, as a result of their quick jostling and falling to the ground while leaving their homes when the earthquake occurred. In addition, there is a number of people who were affected by panic and nervous breakdowns as a result of that, he said, indicating that the necessary first aid and treatment were provided to the injured.

An earthquake measuring 5.5 on the Richter scale struck east of Hama city at 11:56 before midnight yesterday, followed by a number of aftershocks of weaker intensity.

Raghda Sawas