PRESIDENT ERDOGAN can't hold back the pain and bursts into tears

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan – who called it the largest disaster to hit Turkey since a 1938 earthquake in the Elazig province killed more than 33,000 people – declared on Wednesday a three-month state of emergency in the 10 areas hit.

More than 8,000 people have been pulled from the debris in Turkey alone.

But tens of thousands of others are estimated to be stuck under masses of flattened buildings, and many in southeastern Turkey have complained rescue efforts cannot meet the scale of the disaster.

Although there have been lucky people who posted their situation on social media and were rescued, countless messages are still on the internet appealing for assistance – either for themselves under collapsed buildings, or for loved ones who cannot be reached.

It is difficult to know how the situation turned out for most.