Turkey has ended most search and rescue operations, nearly two weeks after a huge earthquake killed tens of thousands of people, the country’s disaster management authority said.
Search and rescue efforts are still underway in 40 buildings in two provinces, Kahramanmara? and Hatay, the agency’s head Yunus Sezer said, according to state news agency Anadolu.
Survivors have continued to be found alive under the rubble since the quake struck. On Saturday, a couple and their 12-year-old child were rescued in Hatay, 296 hours after the earthquake, Anadolu reported. The child later died.
An aerial view of collapsed buildings in Hatay, Turkey, on February 18, 2023.
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Tent city set up in Hatay, Turkey by the coordination of Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) of Turkey on February 18.
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People pray for earthquake victims at Grand Camlica Mosque during the Lailat al Miraj in Istanbul on February 17.
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People wait near a collapsed building in Kahramanmaras, Turkey, hoping for news of their missing relatives on February 14.
Two people walk through earthquake ruins in Hatay on February 12.
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Members of a Greek rescue team work at the site of a collapsed building in Hatay on February 11.
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Sezai Karabas is put on a stretcher after being rescued from rubble in Gaziantep, Turkey, on February 11. Karabas' young daughter Sengul was also rescued.
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan meets with residents in Diyarbakir, Turkey, on February 11.
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Residents walk near a destroyed mosque in Antakya, Turkey, on Friday, February 10.
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People bury earthquake victims in Adiyaman, Turkey, on February 10.
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Rescuers try to free a child trapped under rubble in Hatay on February 10.
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People sit on furniture outside damaged buildings in Jandaris, Syria, on February 10.
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Cranes remove debris next to destroyed buildings in Antakya on February 10.
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People mourn their loved ones as earthquake victims are buried in Adiyaman on February 10.
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Rubble is seen in Kahramanmaras on February 10.
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A man lies on a stretcher after he was rescued in Kahramanmaras on February 10.
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This aerial photo shows damage in Kahramanmaras on February 10.
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Raziye Kilinc is carried through a crowd on a stretcher after she was rescued from a destroyed building in Iskenderun, Turkey, on February 10. Her daughter is seen waving at the top.
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A man walks past collapsed buildings in Hatay on February 10.
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Search-and-rescue workers aid a cat that was rescued in Kahramanmaras on February 10.
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A woman mourns at a hospital in Kahramanmaras while others rest nearby on February 10.
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Rescuers carry Zeynep Kahraman after pulling her alive from the rubble of a building in Kirikhan, Turkey, on February 10.
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A rescuer shows a hole where he was speaking to Kahraman while she was still under the debris on February 9.
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Destruction is seen in the city center of Kahramanmaras on February 9.
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Rescuers move a 14-year-old girl from under some rubble in Kahramanmaras on February 9.
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Firefighter Erhan Sarac and other rescue team members celebrate after a successful evacuation in Elbistan, Turkey, on February 9.
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Mehmet Nasir Duran sits on a chair as heavy machines remove debris from a building where five of his family members were trapped in Nurdagi, Turkey, on February 9.
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People stand next to the dead bodies of earthquake victims in Elbistan on February 9.
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A man, center, reacts after rescue team members removed the dead body of his father in Elbistan.
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Members of search-and-rescue teams work at the site of a collapsed building in Hatay on February 9.
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Destruction is seen in the center of Hatay on February 9.
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A couple mourns the loss of their daughter as her body is transferred to Syria from the Turkish crossing point of Cilvegozu on February 9.
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A bird pulled from the rubble in Hatay is given water on February 9.
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Search-and-rescue efforts continue in Aleppo on February 8.
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Abdulalim Muaini lies under the rubble next to the body of his wife, Esra, in Hatay on February 8. Reuters reported that he was pulled out of the rubble later and survived. His children also died.
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Rescuers carry a man who was stuck in the rubble for two days in Hatay.
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Rescue workers carry 8-year-old survivor Yigit Cakmak from the site of a collapsed building in Hatay on February 8. It was more than 50 hours after the earthquake struck. The boy was passed from rescuer to rescuer until he was finally in the arms of his mother who was waiting at the site.
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People work at the site of a collapsed building in Kahramanmaras on February 8.
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Volunteers distribute aid to people in Antakya on February 8.
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A firefighter works at the Turkish port of Iskenderun, where a fire broke out in the aftermath of the quake.
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Mahmut Salman, 16, is rescued in Hatay on February 8.
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A person walks among tents in Kahramanmaras on February 8.
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The foot of a dead child is seen under a destroyed building in Kahramanmaras on February 8.
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A firefighter searches for people in the rubble of a destroyed building in Gaziantep on February 8.
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Search-and-rescue teams carry 2-year-old Vafe Sabha, who was pulled from rubble along with her mother in Hatay on February 8.
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Volunteers share an emotional moment as they take part in a rescue operation in Hatay on February 8.
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Search-and-rescue efforts continue in Hatay on February 7.
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Mesut Hancer holds the hand of his 15-year-old daughter Irmak, who died in Kahramanmaras.
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Smoke billows from the port in Iskenderun as emergency workers continue rescue efforts on February 7.
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Two people embrace near the rubble of a collapsed building in Hatay on February 7.
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Emergency workers search for people in a destroyed building in Adana, Turkey, on February 7.
Search-and-rescue efforts continue at the site of a destroyed building in Diyarbakir.
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A cat is tended to after being rescued from the rubble in Diyarbakir.
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Emergency workers rescue a child from a collapsed building in Diyarbakir.
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People work through the rubble of a collapsed building in Diyarbakir.
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People search for survivors in Diyarbakir.
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Members of the Syria Civil Defense, aka the White Helmets, retrieve an injured man from the rubble of a collapsed building in Azaz, Syria.
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People search a destroyed building in Diyarbakir.
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People look on at the site of a destroyed building in Adana.
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People search under the rubble of a building that collapsed in Azmarin, Syria.
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People warm themselves outside of earthquake-affected areas in Aleppo on February 6.
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The historic Yeni Mosque is damaged in Malatya.
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People search through rubble at a destroyed building in Diyarbakir.
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In photos: Deadly quake strikes Turkey and Syria
Ilan Kelman, professor of disasters and health at University College London, told CNN that, while there is a precedent for people surviving for this many days after previous earthquakes, “it is unusual.”
“Fundamentally, our bodies can be resilient, but a lot comes down to sheer luck,” Kelman said.
There is a “hierarchy” of needs in these survival situations, he said. “The rule of thumb is three minutes without oxygen, three days without water, three weeks without food,” he said, meaning “there has to be survivable space…enough oxygen.”
Hatay was one of the worst affected of the Turkish provinces hit by the February 6 quake. At least 80% of its buildings will need to be rebuilt after being demolished, the province’s mayor Lutfu Savas said Sunday.
“We need more tents urgently. It will be cold for one more month. People are scared to stay at their homes, but they do not want to leave their animals behind, especially in urban areas,” he said in an interview with Turkish news channel Haberturk.
Turkey’s latest death toll now stands at 40,689 after 47 more deaths were reported, with the collective count across Turkey and Syria having risen to at least 46,530, Anadolu added.
Isil Sariyuce, Yusuf Gezer and Ipek Yezdani reported and wrote from Istanbul, Mia Alberti from Beirut, Christian Edwards and Hafsa Khalil from London.