Rescuers are
battling heavy rain and snow as they race against the clock to find survivors
of a devastating earthquake in south-east Turkey.
More than 4,800
people were killed and 15,000 injured in Turkey and over the border in Syria
when the quake struck in the early hours of Monday.
The World Health
Organization has warned the toll may rise dramatically as rescuers find more
victims.
As day breaks,
rescue teams are stepping up their search for survivors.
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Many people in
the disaster zone have been too scared to go back into buildings.
The 7.8
magnitude tremor struck at 04:17 (01:17 GMT) on Monday at a depth of 17.9km (11
miles) near the city of Gaziantep, according to the US Geological Survey.
Seismologists
say it was one of the largest ever recorded in Turkey, where at least 3,381
people are now known to have died. Survivors say it took two minutes for the
shaking to stop.
A later tremor had
a magnitude of 7.5 and its epicentre was in the Elbistan district of
Kahramanmaras province.
As dawn broke on
Tuesday, traffic was at a standstill on the main highway to the Turkish city of
Maras, close to the epicentre of the quake and believed to be one of the
worst-affected areas.
Cars
occasionally crawled forward, the wet road illuminated by glowing red brake
lights.
Few rescuers
have made it to this part of southern Turkey yet and everyone is trying to get
there as fast as they can to assess the damage and give vital help.
One search and
rescue team on their way to the city, their van loaded with specialist
equipment and supplies, told the BBC they were eager to get there and start
looking for survivors, but they had no idea how bad the devastation would be
when they arrived.
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Almost 8,000
people have been rescued from more than 4,700 destroyed buildings, Turkey's
Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) said in its latest
statement.
As aftershocks
continue, rescuers in some areas have been digging through rubble with their
bare hands looking for survivors.
But freezing
conditions are hampering search efforts.
In the southern
province of Hatay, the Reuters news agency reported that a woman's voice was
heard calling for help under a pile of rubble.
"They're
making noises, but nobody is coming," a resident who gave his name as
Deniz said while weeping.
"We're
devastated, we're devastated. My God... They're calling out. They're saying,
'Save us,' but we can't save them. How are we going to save them? There has
been nobody since the morning."
In the Turkish
city of Osmaniye, near the epicentre, pouring rain hampered rescuers as they
searched through the rubble looking for survivors.
The city was without power as the cold and rain set in.
One family
camped on the street - despite the freezing temperatures - as they were scared
of the aftershocks triggering another building to collapse.
Every time they
felt an aftershock, the family moved closer into the middle of the street.
A hotel owner in
the city told the BBC that of 14 guests staying that night, only seven had been
found.
Countries around
the world are sending support to help the rescue efforts, including specialist
teams, sniffer dogs and equipment.
But the
earthquake has caused significant damage to three airports across Turkey, also
creating challenges for aid deliveries.
At least 1,400
people are now known to have been killed in Syria, where millions of refugees
live in camps on the Turkish border.
Following an
international appeal for help, Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said 45
countries had offered support.
UN Secretary
General António Guterres called for an international response, saying that many
of the families hit by the disaster were "already in dire need of
humanitarian aid in areas where access is a challenge".
The European
Union is sending search and rescue teams to Turkey, while rescuers from the
Netherlands and Romania are already on their way. The UK has said it will send
76 specialists, equipment and rescue dogs.
France, Germany,
Israel and the US have also pledged to help. Russian President Vladimir Putin
has offered help to both Turkey and Syria, as has Iran.
In 1999 a quake
killed more than 17,000 in the north-west, while in 1939, 33,000 people died in
the eastern province of Erzincan.
This earthquake
was powerful enough to be felt as far away as Cyprus, Lebanon and Israel.
By Anna Foster in Maras area and Antoinette Radford in
London || BBC New
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