Syria earthquake: Child pulled from rubble of collapsed building
The World Health Orgnisation (WHO) has warned that survivors of the devastating earthquakes felt across Turkey and Syria face the threat of a “secondary disaster” if aid does not reach them soon.
More than 19,000 people have now died, with many more injured, according to authorities – making it the world’s deadliest seismic event at least since the 2011 Japan tsunami which killed nearly 20,000 people.
Robert Holden, WHO incident response manager, said many people are “out in the open, in worsening and horrific conditions”.
“We are in real danger of seeing a secondary disaster which may cause harm to more people than the initial disaster if we don’t move with the same pace and intensity as we are doing on the search and rescue side,” he said.
The search for survivors has been impeded by sub-zero temperatures and close to 200 aftershocks, which has made searching through unstable structures perilous.
Ahmet Tokgoz, a survivor in the Turkish cty of Antakya said: “Campfires can only warm you up so much. ... If people haven't died from being stuck under the rubble, they'll die from the cold.”
