Hundreds feared dead after quake hits Turkey
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[size=12pt]Rescue workers in eastern Turkey are sifting through rubble of at least 45 collapsed buildings after a 7.2-magnitude earthquake rattled the region on Sunday.<br /><br /><br />Up to 1,000 people may have been killed in the powerful temblor, according to estimates from Turkey's main seismography centre. <br /><br /><br />According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the quake struck eastern Van province, which borders Iran, at about 1:40 p.m. local time. Its epicentre was in the village of Tabanli, near the city of Van. <br /><br />"We are estimating a death toll between 500 and 1,000," the head of the Kandilli observatory Mustafa Erdik told reporters on Sunday.<br /><br />The seismography centre reached their estimate by assessing the strength of the quake and the structure of the housing in the region. It is still too early to determine an exact number of casualties, officials said. <br /><br />At least 50 people have been treated for injuries at the state hospital in Van, according to a state-run news agency. <br /><br />"The quake was strongly felt in Van and neighbouring towns, and caused damage and deaths based on initial assessments," said a statement from the Turkish Prime Minister's office. <br /><br />CNN reporter Andrew Finkel said the location of the quake may make rescue efforts more treacherous. <br /><br />"Van (city), of course, is one of the least densely populated parts of Turkey," he told CTV News Channel on Sunday. "It's a very poor part of Turkey."<br /><br />On the phone from Istanbul, Finkel said he's heard that crews are wading in the rubble of collapsed buildings and have dispatched airborne emergency teams. <br /><br />"We know that there's going to be a very large presence from both rescue workers and officials," he said. <br /><br />Residents across the province reportedly fanned out into the streets in a panic after the quake hit. Television footage showed crews picking up debris with shovels and their bare hands, trying to evacuate people believed to be trapped under collapsed buildings. <br /><br />The situation remains in a state of flux, Van town Mayor Bekir Kaya told a local news station. <br /><br />"The telephone system is jammed due to panic, and we can't assess the entire damage immediately," Kaya said.<br /><br />The USGS originally gave the magnitude as 7.3 but later corrected it to 7.2. It said the quake had a depth of 20 kilometres, which is considered quite shallow meaning it may cause more damage. <br /><br />Turkey is crossed by fault lines, making earthquakes a frequent occurrence. [/size] <br /><br />http://news.sympatico.ctv.ca/world/earthquake_shakes_eastern_turkey_deaths_reported/42c8a885
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Turkey earthquake: baby reunited with mother27 Oct 2011[/li]<br /> [li]Turkey earthquake death toll passes 50027 Oct 2011[/li]<br /> [li]Turkey quake: man loses mother, wife and four children26 Oct 2011[/li]<br /> The Anatolia agency identified the man as 18-year-old Imdat Padak. He was rescued by an Azerbaijani crew.Padak was flown to the nearby city of Van and was dehydrated, but in good condition, according to the news agency.<br />Emergency officials said 187 have been rescued from the rubble. About 2,000 buildings have been destroyed and authorities declared another 3,700 buildings unfit for habitation.<br />More aid began to reach survivors, with Turkish authorities delivering more tents after acknowledging distribution problems that included aid trucks being looted even before they reached Ercis.<br />Families who did snag precious aid tents shared them with others. But some people spent a fifth night outdoors huddled under blankets in front of campfires, either waiting for news of the missing or keeping watch over damaged homes.<br />As survivors gathered pieces of wood to light campfires or stove-heaters, The Red Crescent and several pro-Islamic groups set up kitchens and dished out soup or rice and beans.<br />Sermin Yildirim, eight months pregnant, was sharing a tent with a family of four who were distant relatives, along with her own twins and husband. Her family was too afraid of returning to their apartment.<br /> "It's getting colder, my kids are coughing. I don't know how long we will have to stay here," Yildirim said. "We were not able to get a tent. We are waiting to get our own."<br />Muhlise Bakan, 41, was not happy to share her tent with her husband's second wife, Hamide.<br /> "I have four children, she has five," Bakan said. "We were sleeping in separate rooms at our house, and now we are sleeping side by side here."<br />However, she acknowledged the two women were now "closer" as they struggled together in hard times. Turkish law does not recognize second marriages, but some conservative men in the country's southeast still marry more than one wife in religious ceremonies.<br />Health problems increased the hardship.<br /> "I am very sick, I need medicine," said Kevsel Astan, 40, who had a kidney transplant four years ago.<br />She said she was being treated at the state hospital until the quake struck. The damaged hospital was evacuated and doctors were focusing on emergency cases.<br />http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/turkey/8854539/Turkish-earthquake-13-year-old-boy-pulled-from-rubble.html<br /><br />I hope Tokay will be reunited with his family soon.<br />@PureLove, I'm so glad that you & your family are ok bearhug <br /><br />L.O.V.E. always<br />