Hundreds of thousands of people left homeless by the earthquakes that slammed Turkey and Syria three days ago were seized by cold, hunger, and despair as the death toll exceeded 20,000 on Thursday.
The rescue of a 2-year-old kid and several others after 79 hours trapped under the rubble of a collapsed building in Hatay, Turkey, lifted the morale of exhausted search personnel. But expectations were diminishing that many others would be discovered alive in the wreckage of cities and villages.
The death toll in both countries has now eclipsed the more than 17,000 fatalities in northwest Turkey during a similarly severe earthquake in 1999.
A Turkish official stated that the incident posed "severe difficulties" for the May 14 election in which President Tayyip Erdogan was anticipated to face his most formidable challenge in two decades in office.
The disaster is likely to influence the outcome of the vote if it is held, given the mounting resentment over delays in delivering relief and initiating the rescue attempt.
The first UN assistance convoy for the Syrian people crossed the border from Turkey.
In the Syrian province of Idlib, Munira Mohammad, a mother of four who evacuated Aleppo following the earthquake, stated: "There are just children present, and we require heating and supplies. We were unable to sleep last night since it was so cold. It is terrible."
During the heart of winter, hundreds of thousands of people in both nations have been homeless. Many have camped out in homemade shelters in supermarket parking lots, mosques, or among the rubble, frequently in urgent need of food, water, and warmth.
According to a preliminary study from Turkey's Bogazici University, around 40% of structures in the Turkish city of Kahramanmaras, the earthquake's epicentre, are damaged.
Roadside campfires
At a gas station close to the Turkish city of Kemalpasa, individuals rummaged through cartons of donated clothing. In the maritime town of Iskenderun, journalists from Reuters observed people gathering around campfires on roadsides and in destroyed garages and warehouses.
According to the authorities, about 6,500 structures collapsed in Turkey, while countless others were damaged.
The death toll in Turkey has risen to 17,406, according to Health Minister Fahrettin Koca. According to the government and a rescue organization in the rebel-held northwest, more than 3,300 people have perished in Syria, a country already ravaged by nearly 12 years of civil war.
Ibrahim Khalil Menkaween through the rubble-strewn streets of the ruined Syrian city of Jandaris while carrying a white body bag. He said he had lost seven family members, including his wife and two brothers.
"I'm holding this bag for when they bring out my brother, and my brother's young son and both of their wives so that we can pack them in bags," he stated. "The situation is quite dire. And no relief is available."
According to Turkish officials, from Adana in the west to Diyarbakir in the east, approximately 450 kilometres (280 miles), 13.5 million people were affected. People were killed in Syria as far south as Hama, 250 kilometres from the epicentre.
Turkish broadcasts showed rescue teams searching for survivors at the site of a collapsed building in the city of Adiyaman in the dark and with temperatures below freezing.
Teams frequently demanded stillness, requesting that all vehicles, generators, and media be silent as they listened for signs of life beneath the concrete blocks.
There were still traces of optimism.
A Romanian and Polish rescue crew extracted a 2-year-old boy from the rubble in Hatay 79 hours after the earthquake, according to a video posted by Turkey's Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH) on Thursday.
The youngster, wearing a jumper with blue, white, and black stripes, sobbed as he was carefully extracted from the hole in which he had been trapped. He was transported on a blanket. No other information was immediately provided.
Another IHH video depicted a helmeted, dust-covered rescuer weeping after successfully extricating a young girl from the debris of a collapsed building in Kahramanmaras.
Many in Turkey have complained about a lack of equipment, knowledge, and support for rescuing individuals stranded, sometimes even while they heard it screams for assistance.
After receiving criticism for his initial response, Erdogan stated during a Wednesday visit to the area that activities were now regular and that no one would be left homeless.
Nonetheless, the calamity will present an additional obstacle for the incumbent president in the upcoming election.
Greece donated thousands of tents, beds, and blankets to help those rendered homeless by the earthquake on Thursday in an expression of solidarity with a neighbouring nation that is both a NATO partner and a historic rival.
The Israeli military stated that Israeli satellite intelligence was assisting in mapping disaster zones in Turkey using mapping capabilities typically reserved for special operations.
Syria overwhelmed
The conflict that has partitioned Syria and destroyed its infrastructure complicates aid efforts there.
The UN relief convoy entered Syria at the Bab Al Hawa crossing, a vital entry point to opposition-controlled territories where approximately 4 million people, many of whom had been displaced by the conflict, were already dependent on humanitarian supplies.
Secretary-General of the United Nations Antonio Guterres advocated for increased humanitarian access to northern Syria, stating that he would be "very happy" if the UN could use more than one border crossing to distribute aid.
The Syrian government views the supply of Turkish supplies to the rebel-held northwest as a violation of its sovereignty and territorial integrity.
At least 2,030 people were murdered in opposition-held northwest Syria, according to the Syrian civil defence, while the government recorded 1,345 deaths.
Wednesday, Syria's ambassador to the United Nations acknowledged the government's lack of capability and equipment but blamed the conflict and Western sanctions.
President Bashar al-Assad of Syria has presided over emergency meetings on the earthquake but has not addressed the public or held a news conference.
