Monday’s earthquake was the largest Turkey has seen since 1939.
Ankara:
The death toll from the massive earthquake in Turkey and Syria continued to rise on Thursday, surpassing 21,000 as the first UN aid reached rebel-held areas, but hopes of finding more survivors faded.
The head of the World Health Organization said he was heading to Syria as the bitter cold hampered the search of thousands of bombed-out buildings and threatened the lives of many earthquake victims who lack shelter and drinking water.
Relatives were left behind as they searched body bags deposited in a hospital parking lot in Turkey’s southern Antakya city to search for missing relatives, an indication of the magnitude of the tragedy.
“We found my aunt, but not my uncle,” said Rania Zaboubi, a Syrian refugee who lost eight members of her family.
The chances of finding survivors have decreased as the 72-hour limit that experts consider the most likely time to save lives has passed.
The 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck early Monday morning as people slept, in a region where many had already suffered loss and displacement from the Syrian civil war.
WHO head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Thursday he was on his way to Syria.
“Towards Syria, where WHO is supporting essential health care in the areas affected by the recent earthquake,” Tedros tweeted.
But in a potentially life-saving development, an aid convoy reached rebel-held northwestern Syria earlier in the day, the first since the earthquake, an official at the Bab al-Hawa border crossing told AFP.
– Freezing temperatures –
The crossing is the only way UN aid can reach civilians without going through areas controlled by Syrian government forces.
A decade of civil war and Syrian-Russian aerial bombardments had already destroyed hospitals, collapsed the economy and led to electricity, fuel and water shortages.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged the Security Council to authorize the opening of new cross-border humanitarian aid posts between Turkey and Syria to deliver aid.
Four million people living in rebel-held areas in northwestern Syria had to rely on the Bab al-Hawa crossing as part of a cross-border relief operation approved by the Security Council nearly a decade ago.
“This is the moment of unity, it is not a time to politicize or divide, but it is clear that we need massive support,” Guterres said.
Temperatures in the Turkish city of Gaziantep dropped to -5 degrees Celsius (23 degrees Fahrenheit) early Thursday, but thousands of families spent the night in cars and makeshift tents — too scared or forbidden to return to their homes.
Parents walked the city streets – close to the epicenter of Monday’s quake – carrying their children in blankets because it was warmer than being in a tent.
Gyms, mosques, schools and some shops have opened at night. But beds are still expensive and thousands spend the night in cars with engines running to provide heat.
“I fear for anyone trapped in this under the rubble,” said Melek Halici, who wrapped her two-year-old daughter in a blanket as they watched rescuers work late into the night.
International rescuers have said the intense cold has forced them to consider whether to use their limited fuel supply to stay warm or to carry out their work.
– Racing against the clock –
“No person failed to mention this, the cold,” said Athanassios Balafas, a Greek firefighter, in Athens. “Obviously we chose to continue.”
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan acknowledged on Wednesday that there were “shortcomings” in the government’s handling of the disaster.
Monday’s earthquake was the biggest Turkey has seen since 1939, when 33,000 people died in the eastern province of Erzincan.
Officials and medics said 17,674 people had died in Turkey and 3,377 in Syria from Monday’s magnitude 7.8 quake, bringing the confirmed total to 21,051.
Experts fear that the number will continue to rise sharply.
Anger has increased over the government’s handling of the disaster.
“People who didn’t die from the earthquake were left to die in the cold,” Hakan Tanriverdi told AFP in Adiyaman province, one of the hardest hit areas.
Despite the difficulties, thousands of local and foreign searchers have not given up on the hunt for more survivors.
Two dozen children and some of their parents from Northern Cyprus – 39 Turkish Cypriots in total – were on a school trip to participate in a volleyball tournament when the earthquake hit their hotel in Adiyaman, southeastern Turkey.
The government of their home region has declared a national mobilization and is hiring a private jet so they can assist in the search and rescue of the children.
Ilhami Bilgen, whose brother Hasan was on the volleyball team, looked at the terrifying pile of concrete slabs and heavy stones that used to be the hotel.
“There’s a hollow there. The kids may have crawled in,” Bilgen said. “We still haven’t given up hope.”
– Donor conference –
Dozens of countries, including China and the United States, have pledged to help.
The World Bank said it would give $1.78 billion in aid to Turkey to aid relief and recovery.
Immediate aid of $780 million will be offered from two existing projects in Turkey, the bank said, while preparing an additional $1 billion in operations to support people affected during recovery and reconstruction.
In addition to a staggering human toll, the economic cost of the quake appears likely to exceed $2 billion and could reach $4 billion or more, according to Fitch Ratings.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NewsMadura staff and is being published from a syndicated feed.)
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