More than 20,000 people are now known to have died after Monday's earthquakes in southern Turkey and northern Syria.

Turkey's disaster and emergency management authority says the death toll in the country is now 17,134.

In Syria, at least 3,162 people are known to have died.

Six UN lorries carrying aid have now crossed the border from Turkey into Syria - the first international help people there have had.

Without shelter, water, fuel or electricity the World Health Organisation fears many survivors could yet lose their lives.

It says there's a danger there will be a secondary disaster which may cause harm to more people than the initial quake.

Rescuers in Turkey and Syria are continuing their painstaking work but hopes are fading for the many still trapped under the rubble.

British charities have launched an appeal to raise funds for people affected.

Second disaster looming, says World Health Organization
The World Health Organization (WHO) says a new disaster could be facing the survivors of Monday's earthquakes.

"It's a second disaster looming unless we act very, very fast, meaning shelter, food, water, and medicine because it's freezing cold," Dr Hans Kluge, WHO's regional director for Europe, tells the BBC.

He says most communities in war-torn Syria depend on water reservoirs, which are elevated and were the first to fall due to the earthquake.

Dr Kluge says these reservoirs need urgent replacement, as the country faces cholera outbreaks - which were an issue even before the earthquake, he adds.

Earlier, the WHO said humanitarian organisations in the region now face the challenge of ensuring those who survived the earthquakes can continue to survive amid "horrific conditions".

WHO's incident response manager said thousands remain out in the open, in worsening conditions and with disrupted access to electricity, fuel, communications and water.

Creidt: The BBC