rescue efforts end except in 2 provinces

ISTANBUL: Turkiye has ended rescue efforts in all provinces except the two hardest hit by last week’s massive quake that killed tens of thousands of people, the Turkish disaster agency said Sunday. “In many of our provinces, search and rescue efforts have been completed. They continue in Kahramanmaras and Hatay provinces,” the agency’s chief Yunus Sezer told reporters in Ankara.

The epicentre of the 7.8-magnitude earthquake on February 6 was in Pazarcik district in Kahramanmaras. Sezer said search and rescue efforts continued at around 40 buildings in the provinces on the 14th day, but expected this number to fall by Sunday evening. The agency head also said Turkiye’s death toll had risen to 40,689. The total death toll including Syria is now 44,377. — dpa