The death toll from the magnitude-7.8 earthquake that hit southern Turkey near the Syrian border on February 6th and the tremors that followed has surpassed 50,000.

People living amid damaged buildings and rubble are expressing anger at the authorities.

Forty-four-thousand-two-hundred-eighteen deaths have been confirmed in Turkey, and 5,914 in Syria.

The Turkish government says, as of Friday, at least 173,000 buildings had either collapsed or were in danger of collapsing.

While aid and restoration efforts are continuing, damaged buildings in some areas have still not been demolished or rubble removed.

Hasan Degirmenci, who lives in the hard-hit southern district of Pazarcik, lost six relatives, including his sister, her husband and their two children.

The local authorities who checked his three-story house concluded it needs to be demolished and instructed him not to enter it, but demolition work has not yet begun in the past week.

Hasan, who is Kurdish, says aid and restoration work has been delayed in areas where many Kurds live.

The disaster management authorities covering the area told NHK that buildings most at risk of collapse are being given priority for demolition.