Search and rescue members rest in Istanbul as they await delayed flights

Tired and restless search and rescue and military personnel are scattered around Istanbul International Airport in Türkiye.

Dozens of teams from South Africa, China, Japan, Germany and Tajikistan have been forced to wait in transit as the country grapples with flights being delayed to areas hardest hit by the 7.8-magnitude earthquake that rocked the Middle Eastern country on Monday.

Some have been waiting for more than 12 hours, with airlines delayed due to the volume of flights in and out of the 10 cities affected by the quake. 

A military member from Tajikistan told TimesLIVE they were being deployed to Gaziantep, a city among the nearest to the quake's epicentre.

Rescuers could be seen curled up on benches and lying on the floor, taking advantage of an opportunity to sleep, possibly their last for days.

This as the death toll in Türkiye and Syria is reported to be more than 17,000.

The country's president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, on Tuesday declared a three-month state of emergency in 10 of its provinces.

Reporter Orrin Singh is reporting live from Türkiye. Follow him on Twitter at @orrin417 for live updates. 

TimesLIVE

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