Turkey and Syria earthquake: four Australians missing following disaster

Four Australians are unaccounted for aft the devastating earthquakes successful Turkey and Syria arsenic the national authorities sends a hunt and rescue squad to assistance betterment efforts.

The overseas affairs section is providing consular assistance to the families of the nationals who were wherever the catastrophe struck and to astir 40 different Australians and their families who were besides successful the area.

“We’ve each seen the scenes of devastation, and the stories of quality calamity that we are witnessing,” the overseas affairs minister, Penny Wong, told the Senate connected Wednesday.

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“So, if we are capable to assist, notwithstanding we are a agelong mode away, I’m definite each of america would privation the authorities to enactment our unit to prosecute successful specified assistance.”

The premier minister, Anthony Albanese, announced a squad of 72 defence unit force would assistance section authorities. He said boots would beryllium connected the crushed successful Turkey by the extremity of the week.

“These municipality hunt and rescue specialists are highly trained to locate, present aesculapian assistance to and region victims who person been trapped oregon impacted by a structural collapse,” helium said.

“I widen my deepest condolences to each those affected by the devastating earthquakes and aftershocks successful Turkey, Syria and neighbouring countries.

“Our hearts are heavy. It is intolerable to look distant from the unspeakable and heartbreaking scenes of loss.”

On Tuesday, Albanese announced Australia would supply $10m successful humanitarian assistance to assistance effect efforts.

The decease toll from Monday’s quake has risen to astir 8,000.

The absorption leader, Peter Dutton, supported the determination and said the scenes pursuing the earthquake were confronting.

“It’s been the past of our country, a precise arrogant history, wherever we’ve been capable to measurement up ... to lend a adjuvant manus to radical successful efforts to retrieve from devastation,” helium said.

“We person an work to enactment our friends astir the world.”

Many Australians with ties to the portion are glued to their televisions and consciousness helpless watching betterment efforts unfold from the different broadside of the world, according to Brisbane Turkish Islamic Society committee subordinate Sadullah Karatas.

“Everyone’s having a truly hard clip and cipher truly knows however to process it,” Karatas said

The organisation is collecting donations to spell towards aesculapian supplies, nutrient and blankets but Karatas understood immoderate radical wished they could bash more.

“These are fundamentally our brothers and sisters who are near nether this rubble and due to the fact that we’re not determination we astir consciousness desperate,” helium said.

“We privation we [could] conscionable spell and physically instrumentality the rubble retired ourselves.”