Death toll in Turkey earthquake crosses 21000, rescue teams struggle in biting cold

The death toll in the earthquakes that struck Turkey and Syria has crossed 21,000 with lakhs of people left homeless in the harsh winter amid sub-zero temperatures.

The bitter cold and rain hampered rescue teams in their race against time and hopes were fading that many more would be found alive in the ruins of towns and cities, according to media reports.

The death toll in Turkey rose to 17,674, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said. More than 3,377 people have died in Syria, according to the government.

Yet there have been extraordinary tales of survival that are still emerging such as the rescue of a 2-year-old boy after 79 hours trapped in the rubble of a collapsed building in Hatay.

Hundreds of thousands of people in both countries have been left homeless in the middle of winter. Many have camped out in makeshift shelters in supermarket car parks, mosques, roadsides or amid the ruins, often desperate for food, water and heat, according to Reuters news agency.

The first UN convoy carrying aid to earthquake-hit Syria crossed over the border from Turkey.

India has launched “Operation Dost” to help Turkey and Syria with rescue teams and medical teams to the two disaster-hit nations.

The Indian Army has set up a field hospital in Hatay which will is equipped with surgical and emergency wards.

The United States today announced an initial $85 million package for emergency relief for Turkey and Syria. America said the funding will go to partners on the ground “to deliver urgently needed aid for millions of people” including through food, shelter an

The death toll across both countries has now surpassed the more than 17,000 killed in 1999 when a similarly powerful earthquake hit northwest Turkey.

Around 40% of buildings in the Turkish city of Kahramanmaras, epicentre of the tremor, are damaged, according to an initial report from Turkey’s Bogazici University.

The death toll across both countries has now surpassed the more than 17,000 killed in 1999 when a similarly powerful earthquake hit northwest Turkey.

Turkish officials say some 13.5 million people were affected in an area spanning roughly 450 km (280 miles) from Adana in the west to Diyarbakir in the east. In Syria, people were killed as far south as Hama, 250 km from the epicentre.

Rescue crews looked for survivors at the site of a collapsed building in the dark in the city of Adiyaman with temperatures below freezing, Turkish television reports showed.