TURKEY/SYRIA QUAKE LIVE UPDATES | Death toll nears 8,000

Damaged buildings and rescue operations in the aftermath of the earthquake in Aleppo, Syria, on February 7 2023, in this screen grab from a social media video.
Image: White Helmets/Handout via REUTERS

February 8 2023 — 8.46am

LETTER: While we help Turkey, let’s not forget Ukraine

The devastation in Turkey is painful to watch as news filters through about the thousands who have lost all their material belongings, but most of all their lives.

The world has rallied, sending aid to Syria and Turkey. Our own government, together with help from the Gift of the Givers, is responding swiftly.

February 8 2023 — 8.46am

Earthquake death toll in Syria passes 2,500

The death toll in Syria from a devastating earthquake has increased to more than 2,500, according to Syrian state media and a rescue service in the insurgent-held northwest.

The White Helmets rescue team said on Twitter the casualty toll in insurgent-held areas has risen to more than 1,280 deaths and more than 2,600 injured.

“The number is expected to rise significantly due to the presence of hundreds of families under the rubble, more than 50 hours after the earthquake,” the White Helmets wrote.

Overnight, the Syrian health minister said the number of dead in government-held parts of the country rose to 1,250, the state-run al-Ikhbariya news outlet reported on its Telegram feed. The number of wounded was 2,054.

Reuters

February 8 2023 — 7.29am

WATCH | Newborn baby pulled from collapsing building as death toll nears 8,000 in Turkey/Syria quake disaster

The death toll after a devastating earthquake in southern Turkey and Syria jumped to more than 7,800 people on Tuesday as rescuers worked against time in harsh winter conditions to dig survivors out of the rubble of collapsed buildings. One of those rescued on Tuesday was a newborn baby girl whose whole family was wiped out in the disaster.

As the scale of the disaster became more apparent, the death toll looked likely to rise considerably. A UN official said thousands of children may have died.

February 8 2023 — 7.21am

The Turkish street that lies in ruins after the quake

Street No 21 in Hatay, Turkey, was on Sunday a happy home for dozens of families. By Monday there was hardly anything left.

Turkey's deadliest earthquake since 1999 left the street in ruins and its surviving residents homeless, desperately seeking missing relatives and in shock as they processed what had happened.

Rescue workers have struggled to reach some of the worst-hit areas, held back by destroyed roads, poor weather and a lack of resources and heavy equipment.