Turkish death toll hits 38 as teams hunt for earthquake survivors

Working against the clock in freezing temperatures, Turkish rescue teams pulled more survivors from collapsed buildings Sunday, two days after a powerful magnitude 6.8 earthquake hit the country’s east. Rescued survivors wept with gratitude for their efforts.

Turkish authorities said the death toll rose to at least 38 people.

Turkish television showed Ayse Yildiz, 35, and her 2-year-old daughter Yusra being dragged out of the rubble of a collapsed apartment building in the city of Elazig. They had been trapped for 28 hours.

The quake also injured more than 1,600 people but at least 45 survivors have been pulled from the rubble so far, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said at a news conference Sunday in Istanbul.