The Sunday Mail
Rescue workers in Turkey have pulled at least three people from the rubble, over 11 days after they were trapped when an earthquake hit the country.
Hakan Yasinoglu had been stuck under a flattened building in the hard-hit Hatay province for 278 hours when workers reached him on Friday.
Teenager Osman Halebiye and Mustafa Avci, 34, were also saved in Antakya.
“I had completely lost all hope. This is a true miracle,” Mr Avci’s father told Reuters news agency.
“I thought nobody could be saved alive from there,” he added.
Mr Avci’s daughter was just a few hours old when the quake struck, and, as he was loaded onto a stretcher by paramedics, he was connected with his child via video call.
His wife, Bilge Avci, managed to avoid the earthquake’s devastation and escaped with their child — but Mr Avci got trapped under the rubble, according to local media.
Mr and Mrs Avci — and baby Almile — were reunited late on Friday at a hospital in the southern city of Mersin.
The latest rescues come as the death toll caused by the 7,8 magnitude earthquake in Turkey and Syria passed 41 000 — a figure which is expected to rise dramatically.
As time passes, officials are less optimistic that they can continue to rescue people trapped beneath the rubble.
This is partly due to limits on how long the human body can survive without water, and experts say most rescues occur within the first 24 hours of a disaster.
The reality was reflected as Mr Yasinoglu, in his 40s, was taken from the ruins of a building to a waiting ambulance.
Unlike previous rescues that saw search teams celebrating, the mood on the ground was subdued and sombre, AFP news agency reported.
Meanwhile, around the world, Muslims have performed absentee funeral prayers for the many who were unable to receive full burial rites.
The United Nations has launched an appeal for over US$1 billion to fund the Turkish relief operation, and another US$400 million for Syrians. Aid groups say survivors will need months of help to rebuild their lives. The Turkish government has also faced criticism over its handling of the disaster, and some have questioned the state’s preparation for such a tragedy.
But while President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has conceded that the emergency response to the disaster was slow in places, he has urged Turks not to listen to those whom he accuses of politicising a tragedy.
Neighbouring Syria’s death toll has not changed for several days. — BBC
