, Death toll rises above 4,000 after Turkey, Syria earthquakes -

Death toll rises above 4,000 after Turkey, Syria earthquakes

Following terrible earthquakes that claimed more than 4,000 lives and toppled structures across southeast Turkey and northern Syria, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey has announced seven days of national mourning, and Syria has asked the UN for assistance.

Authorities worry that the death toll from Monday’s magnitude 7.8 earthquake, which was followed by a magnitude 7.6 earthquake and several aftershocks, will rise as rescuers combed through piles of metal and concrete scattered across a region already troubled by Syria’s 12-year civil war and a refugee crisis in search of survivors.

Rescuers continued their search through the chilly night and into Tuesday morning in an effort to find additional survivors among the rubble as those who were trapped screamed for assistance from beneath the mounds of debris.

According to Yunus Sezer, the chairman of Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD), 2,921 people have died and 15,834 have been injured in Turkey.

According to the Ministry of Health and the White Helmets rescue organization on Monday evening, there have been at least 1,300 fatalities in Syria.

The predicament of the thousands of individuals left injured and homeless by the earthquake has been made worse by the freezing winter weather and snowfall in the damaged area. Efforts to locate survivors and deliver vital help to impacted communities have been hampered by collapsed houses and wrecked roadways.

Sinem Koseoglu of Al Jazeera reported from Istanbul and stated that millions of people require assistance.

And because it is winter and they are dealing with chilly temperatures, snow, and rain, their need is even more pressing.

According to Natasha Ghoneim of Al Jazeera who is based in Istanbul, ten cities in southern Turkey have been designated disaster regions. Rescue operations have been hampered by the cold and snow, and more inclement weather is predicted for the area. Many places have lost access to electricity and natural gas, and the administration is striving to restore these services.

On Tuesday, Ghoneim remarked, “A complete image of the damage is only beginning to emerge—devastation that will probably become more visible as the sun rises.”

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