ALSO: International aid pours into Turkey after quake  GALLERIES: A country lies shattered The story of a rescue VIDEO The night after the quake, the search for survivors continued while people were afraid to go back into their homes. CNN's Jerrold Kessel reports. (August 18) Windows Media 28K 80K Izmit, Turkey, was the hardest hit. CNN's Ben Wedeman is there. (August 18) Windows Media 28K 80K INTERACTIVE: Chronology of major earthquakes over the last 20 years  MESSAGE BOARD: Turkey Quake RELATED AUDIO Click here to listen to reactions on the earthquake in Turkey

August 18, 1999
Web posted at: 7:52 p.m. EDT (2352 GMT)

In this story: Papers blame contractors Help on the way, more needed RELATED STORIES, SITES

IZMIT, Turkey (CNN) -- Thousands of Turkish earthquake victims dug, often by hand, through the rubble of their collapsed homes Wednesday, hoping to find more survivors a day after a massive quake devastated western Turkey.

Turkish officials said that more than 4,000 people were killed by the powerful quake, which registered a 7.8 magnitude at the U.S. Geological Service in Golden, Colorado. More than 18,000 were injured, and thousands more were still missing.

The quake was centered between Izmit and Bursa, about 56 miles (90 km) east of Istanbul.

In Izmit and Avcilar, Golcuk and Istanbul -- everywhere the quake struck -- hopes were dwindling that victims could still be alive beneath tons of steel and concrete.

"There's no chance for them now," said one man in a group hacking at crumbling masonry with sledgehammers and axes in Golcuk. Beneath the rubble were eight people buried in their sleep when the early morning quake hit Tuesday.

The death toll was rising by the hour as more debris was removed and contact with several towns and villages cut off by quake damage was reestablished.

While rescuers frantically scraped through the debris, firefighters battled a raging fire at Turkey's largest oil refinery at Izmit. Aircraft dropped chemical flame retardant on the blaze, which threatened to consume the entire facility. Officials feared an explosion if the fire was not contained soon.

Thick black smoke billowed from the Tupras refinery Wednesday afternoon, while panic-stricken families left the area near the refinery and other nearby plants with potentially flammable operations.

Thousands of residents spent the first night after the quake outside in parks and empty lots -- and many said they would not return to their homes just yet, even if those homes were still standing. They feared the buildings were too unstable to withstand further seismic activity, should it come.

"No one wants to go home because of fear of the earthquakes," said Vural Altin in Izmit. "We feel safer outside."

Turkish newspapers blamed building contractors for the disaster, which crushed thousands in their beds as they slept. Shoddy workmanship and substandard materials, the papers said, were the culprits.

The best-selling daily Hurriyet called contractors "Murderers" in a banner headline, and said it had issued warnings about construction problems after previous earthquakes.

"Now the people who did not listen to these warnings are chiefly responsible for this disaster," the paper said.

Many families slept in parks for fear that their buildings, even if standing, were too unstable

Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit said that while the contractors clearly made some mistakes, they could not bear all the fault.

Ecevit said the collapse of buildings at the Golcuk naval base -- where 20 sailors were killed and another 200 were still trapped beneath the rubble -- could not be laid at the feet of building contractors.

"I am sure because of the meticulousness of the armed forces, those buildings were built very carefully," the prime minister said.

International governments and organizations were quick to offer Turkey help, both financially and with manpower. Rescue teams brought sniffer dogs to help sift through the destruction, and firefighting aircraft were on their way.

The United Nations pledged its support, and the European Union prepared to send 2 million euros ($2.11 million) in humanitarian aid.

Turkey pleaded for more help.

"We need more rescue teams, we need at least 250 teams, because that is the number of buildings that have been destroyed," said Sefa Sirmen, mayor of hard-hit Izmit.

In Golcuk, Mayor Ismail Baris said as many as 10,000 people may still be trapped.

Correspondents Ben Wedeman, Rula Amin and Jerrold Kessel, The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

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