Earthquake toll climbs towards 50,000 in Turkey and Syria

The death toll from the devastating earthquakes in Turkey and Syria climbed past 46,000 yesterday, according to officials.

A total of 40,642 people have been killed in Turkey while the Syrian government and the United Nations say more than 5,800 people have died there.

Yunus Sezer, the head of Turkey’s disaster agency, said the number of people found alive under the rubble had dropped in recent days with rescue operations due to be “largely completed” by Sunday evening.

David Beasley, the head of the UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) said the scale of the disaster meant the agency only had money left for approximately 60 days in its earthquake response programme.

He said: “The Syrian and Turkish governments are really cooperating and are giving us the access we need to cross the border.

“But the problems we are running into is the cross-line operations into north-west Syria where the north-western Syrian authorities are not giving us the access we need.”

The news comes after the body of Ghana international footballer Christian Atsu, who previously played with Everton, Chelsea and Newcastle, was found beneath a collapsed building in Antakya.

We are profoundly saddened to learn that Christian Atsu has tragically lost his life in Turkey's devastating earthquakes.

A talented player and a special person, he will always be fondly remembered by our players, staff and supporters.

Rest in peace, Christian. 🖤🤍

— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) February 18, 2023

Nearly two weeks after the earthquake, many people are struggling to survive with thousands living in tents, factories, train carriages and greenhouses.

The Turkish government says at least 84,000 buildings, containing more than 332,000 dwellings, were either destroyed or damaged on February 6.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said 2.2 million people had left the disaster zone. He said 1.6 million people had been housed with around 890,000 placed in public facilities such as student dormitories and 50,000 in hotels.

In Hatay, one of the hardest-hit provinces, farmers left their damaged homes to live in greenhouses normally used for growing tomatoes.

Farmer Ozkan Sagaltici said: “There’s no safe place apart from the greenhouses because the houses collapsed due to the earthquake.”

Meanwhile, the Turkish health minister, Fahrettin Koca, said: “6,447 babies have been born in the earthquake region since the first day of the disaster. Every child born is a hope.

“The necessary health services are provided to the babies and their mothers without interruption”.

Austrian foreign minister Alexander Schallenberg voiced continued support for Turkey at the Munich Security Conference.

He said: “Our hearts go out to all the families who have suffered, who have lost loved ones. This is a catastrophe, and there’s one thing which is needed and it’s full solidarity. The Turkish people can count on us.”