Almost a hundred people have died in the earthquake that was of magnitude 7.0 in Turkey's city of Izmir.
Trigger warning: Distressing images
After a strong earthquake of magnitude 7.0 decimated parts of Turkey's western city of Izmir on October 30, almost a hundred people lost their lives. As many as 900 people were injured and many more are feared missing. Rescue workers have been racing to find more people from under rubble when they found a child, who is only 3 years old, as per CBS News.
The young child was covered in white dust when she was pulled from the wreckage 65 hours after she was trapped. The rescue of 3-year-old Elif Perincek was a "true miracle," said a search and rescue worker, according to Metro UK. Elif is the 106th person who was found alive. She was then taken on a stretcher to an ambulance while rescue workers looked for more people.
"A thousand thanks to you, my God. We have brought out our little one Elif from the apartment block,” Mehmet Güllüoğlu, head of Turkey’s disaster and emergency management authority (Afad), wrote on Twitter, according to the Guardian. The 3-year-old's two sisters and brother were also found alive along with their mother, a day after the earthquake. However, one of the children died later.
A 3-year-old girl, Elif Perincek, was pulled alive from the rubble of her home 65 hours after it collapsed in Izmir, Turkey, when a devastating earthquake hit the city. https://t.co/xtuehA5VJa
— The New York Times (@nytimes) November 2, 2020
Muammer Celik, a rescue worker, was the one who found her, according to Metro UK. Initially, he thought that she was dead but when he reached for her inside the rubble, the little girl showed signs of life. "I thought she might be in the space between her bed and her dresser. I went in that direction and that's where I found her lying on her back. I picked her up. I cleaned her face got rid of the dust. She held my finger and wouldn't let go until we got to ambulance," Celik told CNN. "Elif is our miracle," he added.
"There was dust on her face, her face was white," he was quoted as saying by Metro UK. "When I cleaned the dust from her face, she opened her eyes. I was astonished." He added, "It was a miracle, it was a true miracle... I am now her big brother."
3 year old, Elif Perincek, holding rescue worker’s thumb after being pulled out the debris. Elif was rescued 65 hours after the Izmir #earthquake. #Miracle #İzmir pic.twitter.com/PHNJnwKCDB
— Jaffar Hasnain (@jaffarhasnain) November 2, 2020
Onlookers clapped for the girl and the rescue workers as she was carted off to a hospital. Her rescue happened after a 70-year-old man was found alive from the wreckage of a collapsed building around 34 hours after the earthquake. Ahmet Citim was immediately taken to hospital. The health minister Fahrettin Koca tweeted that the man said, "I never lost my hope."
Earlier, 14-year-old Idil Sirin was found alive after being trapped for 58 hours. Her 8-year-old sister, Ipek, did not survive, NTV television reported (via The Guardian). Afad said this earthquake was the deadliest one to hit Turkey in almost a decade. It had far-reaching effects as two teenagers died on the Greek island of Samos, authorities said.
Rescuers have been working tirelessly night after night to find people trapped under the rubble. They also found bodies overnight amid the crashed buildings in Turkey’s third-largest city, according to Metro UK. A dog named Ares was also rescued. Photos showed that it was wrapped in a blanket to keep it warm but the condition is not known.
Rescue workers are continuing their efforts to save animals trapped under rubble, saving a dog named Ares from the ruins some 65 hours after the quake. #Turkey #animalrescue https://t.co/t0zHw9Inix pic.twitter.com/tvpq29Uh7U
— Duvar English (@DuvarEnglish) November 2, 2020
However, finding 3-year-old Elif gave the people some comfort. She was rescued two days after her mother and two sisters were found. The little girl is now recuperating in a hospital.
The earthquake also triggered a small tsunami that hit Samos and the Seferihisar district of Izmir, which led to the drowning of an elderly woman. The tremors were felt all the way to Istanbul and Athens, Greece.
Another tsunami footage from the earthquake in Izmir province of Turkey.
— Ragıp Soylu (@ragipsoylu) October 30, 2020
This one is really dangerous pic.twitter.com/62zfddWSi8
The country is doing everything possible to come together in this difficult time. More than 3,500 tents and 13,000 beds have been set up to make a temporary shelter in Turkey. Almost 8,000 personnel and 25 rescue dogs are involved in rescue and relief work, according to Afad.
References:
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/turkey-earthquake-girl-rescued-izmir-survivors-trapped-rubble-today/
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/nov/02/girl-3-rescued-from-rubble-nearly-three-days-after-turkey-earthquake
https://edition.cnn.com/2020/11/02/europe/turkey-earthquake-girl-rescue-intl-hnk/index.html
