Death toll rises after Turkish quake

Residents of Ercis, Turkey, gather around fires in the aftermath of a 7.2-magnitude earthquake that rocked the city on Sunday.

The earthquake and aftershocks killed at least 138 people and those numbers are expected to rise, said Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Ercis residents gather around a fire in the street and survey the destruction of the surrounding city.

Rescuers assist a man trapped beneath a collapsed building minutes before his death on Sunday.

Citizens and rescue workers sift through the rubble looking for survivors in Ercis, Turkey.

Two men stand among the rubble of a collapsed building in the aftermath of the quake.

A Turkish man searches for survivors in the rubble.

Rescue efforts continue well into Sunday night.

Men scour the rubble on Sunday looking for survivors.

The quake caused several buildings in Ercis to collapse, trapping an unknown number of citizens in the debris.

• At least 217 people are reported dead; 350 are injured
• The town of Ercis and areas in Van province are among the hardest hit
• Rescue teams struggle to reach some smaller villages
• A 7.6 earthquake in Turkey killed more than 17,000 people in 1999

Ercis, Turkey (CNN) -- The sun rose on a devastated scene in eastern Turkey early Monday as rescue workers scoured rubble from a massive earthquake hoping to find survivors.

Search crews used flashlights, shovels, heavy machinery and clawed with their bare hands to lift debris.

At least 217 people were killed in Sunday's quake, said Turkish Interior Minister Idris Naim Sahin, according to the Anatolian news agency. Authorities expect the death toll to rise.

Another 350 people were injured in the quake, which the U.S. Geological Survey said had a magnitude of 7.2.

Roughly 20 aftershocks rattled eastern Turkey in one of the nation's poorest areas. The largest had a magnitude of 6.0.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said 55 buildings collapsed in Ercis on the north shore of Lake Van. The Turkish Red Crescent said about 25 apartment buildings and a student dormitory collapsed in the town.

A health services building also collapsed, along with part of a hospital, CNN sister network CNN Turk reported. The injured were being treated in the hospital's garden.

Turkish quake survivors confront cold

"People are really scared," CNN Turk reporter Nevsin Mengu said from Van. "The survivors are now trying to survive the cold weather."

Woman pulled from rubble in Turkey

Rescuers and survivors contended with near-freezing temperatures early Monday. Some people collected wood from collapsed buildings to burn for warmth, Mengu said.

Erdogan views Turkey quake damage

She said many residents are not returning to their houses, opting instead to sleep on rooftops or in the streets. It was not clear whether their homes were uninhabitable, or whether they were just too frightened. Electricity and natural gas were off in most of the city.

Turkey earthquake damage 'massive'

Trucks carrying medical aid and food were seen driving into Van. But rescue teams had not yet reached some of the smaller villages in the area, Mengu said.

One man, stuck in the fetal position under a large piece of debris, was visible only through a small hole in the rubble. The man appeared weak and exhausted after rescuers pulled him out, his clothes torn.

At one point, rescue workers halted operations to try to hear if anyone was knocking for help.

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The Red Crescent called for rescue workers, machinery and drinking water. A crisis center was set up by the country's Health Ministry in the Turkish capital of Ankara.

Rescue teams of about 500 people were on the ground, according to the crisis center, and additional aid teams were dispatched from 29 surrounding cities. Medical helicopters were transporting the injured to hospitals in other provinces, the center said.

Two tent hospitals were being set up in Ercis, and two cargo planes were dispatched from the capital carrying medical teams and aid.

Prime Minister Erdogan and Health Minister Recep Akdag arrived in the area Sunday, according to the Ministry of Health's crisis center.

Israel offered Turkey "any help it may require" after the earthquake, Defense Minister Ehud Barak's office said. Israel and Turkey, once close allies, saw a deterioration in relations in a dispute over an Israeli naval commando raid on the Gaza-bound ship Mavi Marmara, in which nine Turkish activists were killed.

A spokesman for the Turkish Foreign Ministry said the country, while grateful for offers of aid, is prepared to handle the disaster on its own.

Turkey is "no stranger to having these seismic events," but Sunday's quake is considered major, CNN Meteorologist Reynolds Wolf said.

A magnitude 7.6 earthquake in Izmit, Turkey, killed more than 17,000 people in 1999, according to the USGS. A magnitude 7.2 tremor in Duzce the same year killed 894 people, the USGS reported.

Sunday's major quake struck at 1:41 p.m. local time, about 12 miles from Van, the USGS said.

CNN's Guy Azriel, Talia Kayali and Hande Atay contributed to this report.

Source: http://rss.cnn.com/~r/rss/cnn_world/~3/fCEIpN9G-k0/index.html

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