Center goes to survivors as Turkey-Syria tremor cost passes 35,000

 The devastating earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria on February 14 has left a tragic toll in its wake, with confirmed deaths exceeding 35,000. As the search and rescue efforts continue, attention is now being turned to the survivors. Approximately 1.2 million people have been housed in student residences, more than 206,000 tents have been erected, and 400,000 victims evacuated from the devastated areas.

 [1] The disaster has also exacted a psychological toll, as survivors are left to grapple with the enormity of the tragedy.

 [2] In Turkey, clean-up teams have been shifting rubble and putting up basic toilets as the telephone network started to come back in parts of the town [3]. 

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, isolated and subject to Western sanctions, called for international assistance to help rebuild infrastructure in the country.

 [4] UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Assad has agreed to open two more border crossings from Turkey to northwest Syria to allow in aid. 

[5]Before the earthquake struck, almost all of the crucial humanitarian aid for the more than four million people living in rebel-controlled areas of northwest Syria was being delivered through just one crossing [6]Aid for Syria is expected to increase with the arrival of trucks carrying shelter kits from Turkey.

 [7] As authorities and aid workers focus their efforts on providing relief to the hundreds of thousands of homeless people who face cold and hunger amongst the rubble.