Turkish Teenager Rescued From Rubble Friday

Posted October 28th, 2011 at 4:20 am (UTC-5)
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Rescue workers in Turkey pulled a teenage boy out of the rubble Friday, more than 100 hours after a 7.2-magnitude earthquake decimated much of the country's southeast on Sunday.

They found the boy hours after rescuing another young man in Ercis Thursday. But hopes of finding other survivors were fading as cold weather and snow hampered rescue efforts in Ercis, the town hardest hit by the quake, and other towns and villages in the region.

Authorities raced to provide shelter for thousands of victims left homeless by the quake. Early Friday, officials said the death toll has gone up to 570 and the injury total has risen to at least 2,500 people. They expect the death toll to continue to climb as more bodies are pulled from the rubble.

The International Federation of the Red Cross says its Turkish chapter is working to assist survivors, and has distributed more than 7,500 tents and 22,000 blankets, as well as stoves, food and clean water.

Many displaced residents complain the government is not acting fast enough to distribute aid. Despite waiting in long lines for hours, some have been unable to get tents or shelter. Many people have been forced to sleep outdoors with blankets near campfires.

There have been reports of some people obtaining extra tents and selling them for profit, while Turkey's Red Crescent organization said 17 of its supply trucks were looted Wednesday.