Erdoğan imposes three month state of emergency on 10 Turkish provinces affected by quake
At least 3,549 have died in Turkey, while Syria toll stands at about 1,600; more than 24,000 people involved in search and rescue.
Reuters reports that Turkish authorities say about 13.5 million people were affected by the quake.
It says the impact has been felt in an area spanning roughly 450 km (280 miles) from Adana in the west to Diyarbakir in the east, and 300 km (185 miles) from Malatya in the north to Hatay in the south. Syrian authorities have reported deaths as far south as Hama, about 100 km (60 miles) from the epicentre of Monday’s early morning quake.
Preisdent Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Tuesday declared as a disaster zone the 10 provinces affected by the devastating earthquakes in southern Turkey, imposing a state of emergency in the region for three months.
In a speech, Reuters reports that Erdoğan said that 70 countries had offered help in search and rescue operations and that Turkey planned to open up hotels in the tourism hub of Antalya, to the west, to temporarily house people affected by the quakes.
He said the death toll in Turkey had risen to 3,549 people, raising the combined death toll in Turkey and Syria to 5,151.