9.02.2023 04:23
(Akt. 9.02.2023 04:30)
As aid begins, the number of quake deaths increases
©APA/GEORG HOCHMUTH
After the devastating earthquake in the Turkish-Syrian border area, the total death toll in both countries has risen to over 15,000. According to a new balance sheet published by authorities and rescue workers on Thursday night, 12,391 people died in Turkey. In Syria, the death toll rose to 2,992.
The 7.8 magnitude earthquake shook the Turkish-Syrian border area on Monday morning. Rescue workers in both countries tried desperately to find possible survivors on Thursday night when temperatures remained freezing. It is feared that the number of victims will continue to rise.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan admitted on Wednesday that there were “deficits” in crisis management after the disaster. However, during a visit to two particularly affected regions, he also said that it was not possible “to be prepared for such an earthquake”.
Many people are still missing under the rubble in both countries. According to Anadolu, more than 6,000 buildings have collapsed in Turkey alone. More than 13 million people were affected by the massive tremors.
According to the broadcaster TRT World, around 8,000 people have been rescued from the rubble in Turkey so far. A reporter from the TV channel reported on the desperate fight against time: “The rescuers refuse to give up.” But the moments of joy about another rescue were becoming rarer and rarer.
Nevertheless, there are still success stories: A 24-year-old man was rescued around 64 hours after the earthquake in the Turkish province of Kahramanmaras. According to information from Wednesday evening, a 75-year-old woman was freed from the rubble in Hatay province 60 hours after the natural disaster. A seven-month-old baby was found alive in the southern province of Adiyaman.
The rescue teams work tirelessly to find any survivors. The critical survival limit is usually around 72 hours. Pictures from the disaster areas also showed excavators removing debris on Thursday night. Relatives of those who were buried waited for the news of relief at temperatures around freezing.
In northern Syria in particular, the extent of the disaster is difficult to grasp. Aid is progressing slowly – not least because of the political situation in the civil war country. According to the UN, emergency aid was also made more difficult because of a destroyed road to the Bab al-Hawa border crossing between Turkey and Syria, which the World Health Organization says has now been repaired. The United Nations hopes that trucks will be able to cross the border again on Thursday.
The UN World Food Program (WFP) also immediately launched help. “A region that has been plagued by repeated crises for years faces another crisis of unimaginable loss and destruction,” said Corinne Fleischer, WFP regional director for the Middle East, North Africa and Eastern Europe. The EU wants to hold a donor conference for Syria and Turkey in early March.