The death toll from the February 6 earthquake in Turkey and Syria rose to more than 41,000, according to updated official counts, as the United Nations appealed for $1 billion to tackle the growing humanitarian crisis.
Eleven days after the earthquake, rescuers managed to extract a 17-year-old girl from the rubble.
“He looked in good health. She opened and closed her eyes,” said Ali Akdogan, a coal miner, after helping to rescue Aleyna Olmez in Kahramanmaras, a town near the epicenter of the quake.
However, hope of finding survivors has been largely dashed.
Many in the affected areas face a parallel emergency as they try to collect their belongings in the bitter cold, without food, water or toilets, increasing the chances that the disaster will escalate due to disease.
“The needs are enormous, people are suffering and there is no time to lose,” warned the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, in a statement, where he requested funds to help the victims.
He assured that the contributions would provide relief for three months to 5.2 million people.
The money “would allow aid organizations to rapidly increase life support” in areas such as food security, protection, education, water and shelter, he added.
“I urge the international community to step up and fully fund this crucial effort in response to one of the worst natural disasters of our time.”
Officials and doctors say that 38,044 people have died in Turkey and 3,688 in Syria since the earthquake on February 6, for a total of 41,732 confirmed deaths.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has rejected accusations that his government has failed to respond to the country’s deadliest natural disaster in recent times.
new rescues
Aleyna Olmez, 17, was rescued 11 days after the magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck.
“We have been working here, in this building, for a week now (…) We came hoping to hear something,” said a miner who participated in the rescue efforts in Kahramanmaras, a city near the epicenter of the earthquake.
“We are happy when we find something alive, even if it is a cat,” he added.
As a young man, his uncle, crying, hugged all the rescuers one by one, telling them: “We will never forget you.”
The NTV channel later indicated that Neslihan Kilic, a 20-year-old woman, was rescued 258 hours after the first tremor in that same city.
According to CNN Türk, more than 250 people died in the complex where the young Kilic was found alive.
Turkey suspended rescue efforts in some regions. The Syrian government took the same measure in areas under its control.
On the other hand, a 55-year-old man from Ankara was arrested in the Turkish province of Hatay (south) while trying to steal a baby from a hospital, taking advantage of the chaos generated by the earthquake, reported the official Anadolu press agency.
The man introduced himself as a former police officer at the establishment, located in the city of Samandag, and claimed a baby, giving his name, according to Anadolu.
He was arrested and handcuffed, and was in possession of several false identity documents.
(With information from AFP)