An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.8 jolted southeast Turkey and Syria on Monday Morning. Photo: IC

Many Chinese netizens are concerned about the safety of Idris Talha Kartav, a Turkish guest in a popular Chinese variety show called Informal Talks. No-one has heard from Kartav since the deadly earthquake in Turkey and Syria.

The latest news from his family published on Sina Weibo on Wednesday said that search and rescue is continuing at the hotel where Kartav is believed to be buried under rubble.

Lots of Chinese netizens have been praying for the celebrity as well as other people suffering from the earthquake, hoping that they can pull through from the damage of the disaster as soon as possible.

Kartav has been developing his career in China for a few years and has become known by his Chinese name, Tang Xiaoqiang. In the show Informal Talks, which focuses on debates related to different cultural discussion topics among representatives from diverse countries around the world, Kartav showed his sense of humor, wide horizons and a friendly as well as respectful attitude to Chinese culture and people. As a result, he has become popular with followers of the variety show.

The 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck the city of Nurdagi in Gaziantep Province in southern Turkey on Monday. Since the disaster happened, Chinese netizens have been concerned about the rescue situation in the affected areas.