Earthquake in Turkey and Syria: rescuers rescue woman after 52 hours under rubble

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Search for victims in the city of Kahramanmaras, one of the epicenters of the tremors

Photo: SUHAIB SALEM / REUTERS

This article is continuously updated.

The death toll in Turkey and Syria exceeds 8,300

7.14 a.m .:

After the devastating earthquake in the Turkish-Syrian border area, the number of fatalities in both countries rose to more than 8,300 on Wednesday, according to the latest information.

The respective authorities last counted 5,894 deaths in Turkey and 2,470 in Syria, so a total of 8,364 people died.

It is expected that many more fatalities will be found in the coming hours and days - many people are still buried in freezing temperatures.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), up to 23 million people in Turkey and Syria could be affected by the earthquake.

Helpers rescue woman after more than two days under rubble

7.03 a.m .:

Rescue workers rescued a woman alive in south-east Turkey 52 hours after the severe earthquake.

Pictures from the NTV broadcaster showed on Wednesday how the emergency services in the province of Kahramanmaras carried the woman on a stretcher to the ambulance.

She is therefore 58 years old and was buried in a collapsed hotel.

The province of Kahramanmaras was hit hard by the quake, which is where one of the epicenters was located.

The search for other missing persons continues.

Some of the injured are brought to the metropolis of Istanbul for treatment, as the broadcaster further reported.

Atatürk Airport, which has been closed for civil air traffic, will be used for this purpose.

With a magnitude of 7.7 to 7.8, the quake shook the area on the border between Turkey and Syria early Monday morning.

Another earthquake of magnitude 7.5 followed in the same region on Monday afternoon.

New earthquake in West Bank

5.47 a.m .:

After the devastating earthquake that killed thousands in the Turkish-Syrian border region, the earth also shook in the West Bank and Israel.

The European-Mediterranean Seismological Center (EMSC) reported slight earthquakes for the region late Tuesday evening.

The epicenter was near the West Bank city of Nablus.

The earthquake had a magnitude of 4.4.

The Al-Najah University earthquake center in Nablus reported a magnitude of 3.7.

Israeli media reported that the earthquake was felt in several places in Israel.

There were initially no reports of damage.

The tremors did not pose any danger to the population, the media reported, citing the Israeli army.

Israel and the West Bank are also traditional earthquake zones.

This is where the Arabian and the African tectonic plates meet.

fek/dpa/AFP