Earthquake takeaways: Hope fading in frigid Turkey, Syria

GAZIANTEP, Turkey (AP) — The search for survivors of the earthquake that toppled thousands of buildings in Turkey and Syria has reached a critical stretch, with rescue teams from two dozen countries helping locals sift through the rubble and experts warning that the realistic window to find any in the frigid temperatures is quickly closing. The death toll from the magnitude 7.8 quake that struck Monday stood Wednesday at nearly 12,000, making it the deadliest since a magnitude 9.0 quake off the coast of Japan in March 2011 triggered a tsunami, killing nearly 20,000. With the damage from Monday’s quake so extensive and spread so widely, experts said the window for survival was quickly closing, even with so many people involved in the rescue effort.