Quake Latest: Death Toll Nears 25,000; More Survivors Found

(Bloomberg) – The death toll from earthquakes that have struck Turkey and Syria has surpassed 24,000 as rescue workers continue the search for survivors, with reports of miraculous rescues.

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distro scale

After 122 hours, a 70-year-old woman was evacuated alive from the rubble of a residential building in the southeastern Turkish city of Kahramanmaras. Tens of thousands of people are still missing. According to the civil protection authority, the number of people injured in Turkey is over 80,000.

Turkish soldiers began patrolling parts of the quake area against looting and theft.

Important Developments

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(All times Istanbul, GMT +3)

Death toll nearing 25,000 (9:20 a.m.)

The death toll in Turkey and Syria rose to 24,804, according to Turkish officials and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which deploys a network of activists on the ground. Tens of thousands of people are still missing.

The death toll in Turkey surpassed that of the devastating 1999 earthquake near Istanbul, when about 18,000 people died, according to official figures.

The number of people injured in Turkey tops 80,000, the country’s civil protection agency said.

Shabby Material Discovered in Some Collapsed Buildings (8:54 am)

Turkish experts found substandard materials and rusting steel in the collapsed buildings in Sanliurfa province after an investigation by the Prosecutor General’s Office, news channel NTV reported.

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Critics say poor construction and inadequate inspections during construction were among the factors that contributed to the massive devastation.

Miracle Survivor (5:48 AM)

After 122 hours, a 70-year-old woman was evacuated alive from the rubble of an apartment building collapsed by the earthquake in the southeastern Turkish city of Kahramanmaras, state-run Anadolu News Agency said.

Soldier Patrol (5:30 a.m.)

Turkish soldiers have started patrolling the streets where banks and jewelry stores are located in Hatay, one of the worst-hit provinces, Fox TV reported.

Turkey Denies Damage to Dams (1:57 am)

Agriculture and Forestry Minister Vahit Kirisci dismissed allegations that the Yarseli Dam in quake-hit Hatay province had been damaged, adding that he would inspect dams in the area on Saturday.

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One Million Survivors in Shelters (1:09 am)

More than a million quake survivors have been taken to emergency shelters, said Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay. Almost 200,000 people have been evacuated from the earthquake zone in the west of the country, he said.

Credit card payment rules relaxed (9:24 p.m.)

Turkey’s banking regulator BDDK said the minimum monthly payment quota for credit cards would be reduced to 20% for all those affected in the earthquake zone. The quota to be paid – based on the credit card limit – was up to 40% before the decision was made.

Banks make their own decisions about blocking cards for failure to pay the minimum required amount. You can push card payments back, including minimum amounts.

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The decisions are valid until January 1, 2024.

Syrian aid becomes a political pawn (8:32 p.m.)

Aid shipments to Syrian victims have been hampered by disputes between rival powers in the country’s more than decade-long war.

While supplies have flowed to badly damaged regions of Turkey, the affected areas in Syria are mostly controlled by anti-government forces, which President Bashar al Assad has been fighting since 2011. The US and Europe amid longstanding international sanctions against Assad and his government for atrocities committed since the beginning of the conflict, leaving the earthquake victims as pawns in the broader struggle for statehood in the Middle East. in NPLs and other humanitarian costs.”

Cost of Reconstruction (6:21 p.m.)

“It’s very difficult to put a total cost estimate at this point,” but the estimated cost of rebuilding collapsed and damaged buildings in Turkey is between $3 billion and $5 billion, said Bank of America Turkey economist Zumrut Imamoglu. in a note. “At least another $2-3 billion is needed to support affected people,” the report said.

“Many other costs are associated with the disaster, such as repairing the energy and transport grid, destroying business activities, increasing bad loans and other humanitarian costs.”

—With the support of Beril Akman.