An excavator is used to skim, as precisely and delicately as possible, layers upon layers of concrete wreckage where a seven-storey apartment building in the city of Adiyaman in southeastern Turkiye stood, before Monday’s earthquake flattened it.
Small gapshave been opened in the debris, with the possibility of providing air to anyone trapped underneath.
But, while there were reports Wednesday of voices emanating from the building debris— by Thursday, there were none.
Rescuers have been working at the site of the ruined apartment building for days, searching for survivors of the earthquake Monday, and the extreme after shocks that followed. Similar scenes are playing out at locations across Turkiye and Syria, as officials estimate a death toll that’s expected to grow beyond the 19,000-plus, so far.
The sound of heavy equipment working to find signs of life is constant.
And while there have been stories of people being pried from under the wreckage in the hours and days since the quake, as time goes by, the hopes of finding more are fading.
One woman waiting near the Adiyaman apartment Thursday told CTV National News Correspondant Tom Walters she was hoping she’d hear soon about her uncle. The body of her aunt was lying in a bag on the road.
Another man with a large bandage on his headwas nearby too, after he was on the fourth floor of his apartment building when it collapsedin the quake. The man was buried for half an hour. Between the earthquake striking and his discovery under the rubble, he told Walters it felt like time was suspended between life and death.
At the apartment building, the excavator is being guided by those who have knowledge of the building and its layout. People are also going through the debris by hand, looking at personal effects that could offer clues about who may still be buried underthe piles of stone, wire and concrete.
In Turkiye, as of Thursday more than 16,100 people were reported as dead, and another 64,000 are injured. In Syria and another 3,100 were killed and more than 5,000 are reported injured.
As well, tens of thousands of people have been displaced. The biting cold has been another challenge for survivors who have lost everything including warm clothes.
Rescue teams globally, from Taiwan, Spain, Pakistan and other nations have started to arrive to quicken aid efforts.
While Canada said Tuesday it will provide an initial $10 million in aid for Turkiye and Syria, International Development Minister Harjit Sajjan said a needs assessment is being conducted and Ottawa is looking at next steps.
The federal government has not ruled out sending a Disaster Assistance Response Team to the affecting regions, Defence Minister Anita Anand told The Canadian Press on Tuesday.
Watch the video above to see more reports from Turkiye from CTV National News Correspondant Tom Walters and others.
With files from CTV News Los Angeles Bureau Chief Tom Walters, The Associated Press and The Canadian Press
