Turkey decided on Sunday to suspend search and rescue operations, 14 days after the strong quake, except in the hardest-hit provinces of Kahramanmaras and Hatay, the government relief agency (Afad) announced.
“In many provinces, the search efforts have ended. They will continue in Kahramanmaras and Hatay provinces, in about 40 buildings,” said Yunus Sezer, head of AFAD.
According to a report released today by this organization, the earthquake that shook southern Turkey and northern Syria left 40,689 dead in Turkey, while the number of victims in Syria is around 4,000.
The head of the government aid agency also said that 105,000 buildings had collapsed or were badly damaged and would be demolished.
The earthquakes in Turkey and Syria, measuring 7.7 and 7.6 on the Richter scale, respectively, occurred on February 6, followed by several aftershocks but of much lower intensity.
The World Health Organization (WHO) raised this Friday to 84.5 million dollars (79 million euros) the international request for financial aid for those affected by these earthquakes.
Source: TSF
