Death toll in Turkey-Syria earthquake crosses 24,000 as rescue operation ‘nears end’

The death toll from the devastating earthquakes in Turkey and Syria has reached at least 24,178.

In Turkey, about 20,665 people have been confirmed dead while the death toll stands at 3,513 in Syria.

Despite biting weather conditions and a race against time, more rescue operations are still taking place — five days since the earthquake struck.

On Saturday, rescue teams pulled five members of a single-family alive from the wreckage of their home, 129 hours after the quake.

Daily Sabah, a local news site, reports that the mother and daughter were first extricated from a mound of debris before efforts to reach the father began.

He, however, insisted that his other children be saved first. Hours later, he was rescued.

Also, a 70-year-old woman was rescued after being trapped for 121 hours under the rubble in the Turkish city of Kahramanmaras.

TheCable had earlier reported how a family of six was rescued on Friday after being trapped under a building.

Belit Tasdemir, United Nations liaison officer at the Search and Rescue Association in Turkey, said rescue teams, who have been on the ground for several days, are starting to become affected by the cold temperatures and “extreme fatigue”.

“The sheer level of, and how widespread the devastation is, is completely unprecedented in terms of what we’ve seen before in Turkey,” Tasdemir told CNN.

“We’re approaching the end of the search and rescue window, and plus the probability of finding survivors under the rubble in below-freezing temperatures is becoming a lower probability.”

More than 90 percent of earthquake survivors are rescued within the first three days during a disaster like this and it is now well over 120 hours since the first earthquake struck.