Scenes of heartbreak on Turkey street left in ruins

STORY: With limited resources, homeless residents combed through the site of flattened homes, some looking for their loved ones, others hoping to save some of their belongings, all while they wait for more help to arrive.

Turkish authorities say more than 12,000 search and rescue personnel are working in the affected areas and another 9,000 troops. President Tayyip Erdogan called a state of emergency on Tuesday to bolster the response.

But one major challenge is the sheer scale of the disaster over a large area, requiring a huge mobilization of manpower to help look for survivors. Scant information has come out of some places, raising concern about the extent of the devastation that could yet be discovered.