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More survivors found as Turkey-Syria quake toll tops 11,200

More survivors found as Turkey-Syria quake toll tops 11,200
February 8, 2023 Web Desk

ANTAKYA, Turkey (AFP) - Searchers were still pulling survivors Wednesday from the rubble of the earthquake that killed over 11,200 people in Turkey and Syria, even as rescue chances dwindled and victims clamoured for help.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited one of the hardest-hit spots, quake epicentre Kahramanmaras, and pushed back at criticism his government's response has been slow. "Initially there were issues at airports and on the roads, but today things are getting easier and tomorrow it will be easier still," he said in televised remarks.

For two days and nights since the 7.8 magnitude quake, thousands of searchers have worked in freezing temperatures to find those still alive under flattened buildings on either side of the border. Turkish Red Crescent chief Kerem Kinik had warned that the first 72 hours were critical in search and rescue efforts but pointed to complications of "severe weather conditions".

Emergency workers on Wednesday saved some children found under a collapsed building in the hard-hit Turkish province of Hatay, where whole stretches of towns have been levelled. "All of a sudden we heard voices and thanks to the excavator... immediately we heard the voices of three people at the same time," said rescuer Alperen Cetinkaya.

"We are expecting more of them... the chances of getting people out of here alive are very high," he added. Officials and medics said 8,574 people had died in Turkey and 2,662 in Syria from Monday's 7.8-magnitude tremor, bringing the total to 11,236 -- but that could yet double if the worst fears of experts are realised. The World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has warned that time is running out for the thousands injured and those still feared trapped.

'Children are freezing' 

Even for survivors, the future seems bleak. Many have taken refuge from relentless aftershocks, cold rain and snow in mosques, schools and even bus shelters -- burning debris to try to stay warm. Frustration is growing that help has been slow to arrive.

"I can't get my brother back from the ruins. I can't get my nephew back. Look around here. There is no state official here, for God's sake," said Ali Sagiroglu in Kahramanmaras. "For two days we haven't seen the state around here... Children are freezing from the cold," he said.

In nearby Gaziantep, shops were closed, there was no heat because gas lines have been cut to avoid explosions, and finding petrol was tough. Sixty-one-year-old resident Celal Deniz said the police had to intervene when impatient crowds waiting for rescue teams "revolted".

About 100 others wrapped in blankets slept in the lounge of an airport terminal normally used to welcome Turkish politicians and celebrities. "We saw the buildings collapse so we know we are lucky to be alive," said Zahide Sutcu, who went to the airport with her two small children.

"But now our lives have so much uncertainty. How will I look after these children?" Across the border in northern Syria, a decade of civil war and Syrian-Russian aerial bombardment had already destroyed hospitals, collapsed the economy and prompted electricity, fuel and water shortages.

In the rebel-controlled town of Jindayris, even the joy of rescuing a newborn baby was tainted with sadness. She was still tethered to her mother who was killed in the disaster. "We heard a voice while we were digging," Khalil al-Suwadi, a relative, told AFP.

"We cleared the dust and found the baby with the umbilical cord (intact) so we cut it and my cousin took her to hospital." The infant faces a difficult future as the sole survivor among her immediate family. The rest were buried together in a mass grave on Tuesday.

International response 

Dozens of nations including the United States, China and the Gulf States have pledged to help, and search teams as well as relief supplies have begun to arrive by air.

A winter storm has compounded the misery by rendering many roads -- some of them damaged by the quake -- almost impassable, resulting in traffic jams that stretch for kilometres in some regions.

The World Health Organization has warned that up to 23 million people could be affected by the massive earthquake and urged nations to rush help to the disaster zone.

The Syrian Red Crescent appealed to Western countries to lift sanctions and provide aid as President Bashar al-Assad's government remains a pariah in the West, complicating international relief efforts.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the United States would not work with the Damascus government. "These funds, of course, go to the Syrian people -- not to the regime. That won't change," he said. Aid agencies have also asked the Syrian government to allow border crossings to be reopened to bring help to rebel-held areas.

The Turkey-Syria border is one of the world's most active earthquake zones. Monday's earthquake was the largest Turkey has seen since 1939, when 33,000 people died in the eastern Erzincan province. In 1999, a 7.4 magnitude earthquake killed more than 17,000.

Experts have long warned that a large quake could devastate Istanbul, a megalopolis of 16 million people filled with rickety homes.