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Turkey-Syria Earthquake: Death Toll Passes 9,000

Syria-Turkey Earthquake/ⓒAl Jazeera

More than 9,000 people have been confirmed dead as of Wednesday morning following Monday’s earthquakes in southern Turkey and northern Syria.

And with freezing temperatures, authorities warn the toll could continue to increase.

Two earthquakes (a 7.8 magnitude quake and a 7.5 magnitude tremor) struck, destroying thousands of buildings in the two countries.

The first struck at 4:17 am local time, followed by dozens of aftershocks.

The second struck less than 10 hours later.

Turkish emergency services have reported at least 6,957 deaths while the Syrian government has counted no fewer than 1,250 on its side.

The White Helmets, a volunteer first response team in northwestern Syria says it has counted more than 1,280 corpses in rebel-held areas.

Rescue is continuing into Wednesday afternoon but officials say time is running out.


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