Miracle in Izmir: Excited rescue crews applauded as survivor turns to hospital • Powerful earthquake claimed the lives of 39 people, 885 injured
Quite a few miracles have taken place in Izmir, Turkey, since the earthquake that was felt in the country last Friday, but tonight (Sunday) was the biggest of them: after no less than 33 hours, a man was safely rescued from the rubble of a collapsed building.
The Haber-Turk network reported that rescue crews were very excited about the incident - and applauded when the same survivor, Ahmet Chitim, turned to the ambulance.
Documentation of the miracle in Izmir: A man named Ahmet Chits was rescued safely after 33 hours under the rubble - and evacuated by ambulance for further treatment at hospital #Turkey #Izmir #EarthquakeIzmir @RTErdogan @fuatoktay @IsraelHayomHeb pic.twitter.com/0daGz0gjvg
- Dean Shmuel Elmas (@ElmasDean) October 31, 2020
So far, 39 people have been killed and about 885 injured in Turkey, where 17 buildings collapsed.
The quake claimed the lives of two people in Greece.
Turkey is an experienced country in dealing with earthquakes.
The last time it dealt with a magnitude 7.0 earthquake occurred on October 23, 2011, when a magnitude 7.2 earthquake shook the eastern province of Van - killing 604 people and destroying 2,262 buildings.
The quake was felt in large areas of Turkey.
Aside from Izmir, citizens have also felt it in the country’s largest city, Istanbul, as well as in Oshak, Denizli, Mansa, Blixir, Aydin and Mullah.
Now, unlike previous earthquakes, Turkey has chosen to deal with the event on its own - despite all offers of assistance, including from Israel.
In a statement of appreciation from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, he even mentioned Israel as one of the countries that offered to help.
According to Turkish authorities, more than 100 trapped people have been rescued from the rubble.
Like other disasters, Izmir also mixed happy and sad stories.
A mother and her three children were rescued from the rubble in Izmir after about 18 hours, but one of the children died of his wounds at the hospital.
Another fireplace is still under the rubble.
Then, another person is rescued safely after 30 hours.
The mayor of Izmir, Tonch Sawyer, said last night that there are about 180 trapped under the rubble.
At the same time, the hospitals in and around Izmir are treating 243 inpatients, eight of them in intensive care and three in critical condition.
Since the quake, there have been no fewer than 389 aftershocks - 33 of them with a magnitude of more than 4.0.
Many civilians, whose homes were badly damaged, spent the night in their cars or city parks.
In order to cope with the scale of the difficult rescue work, the Turkish government is deploying its best forces: 475 vehicles, almost 4,000 rescuers and 20 locating dogs.
The Coast Guard brought to Izmir 116 policemen, 11 boats, three helicopters and one crew of divers.
The Turkish Red Crescent employs 112 workers, 137 volunteers, 27 vehicles and five field kitchens.
"We can address the 56,300 people currently in Izmir," said Dr. Krem Kinik, president of the Turkish Red Crescent.
Also, in order to address the civilians whose homes were destroyed, 960 tents were deployed, and 4,500 blankets and 3,672 beds were brought.
The total force deployed to deal with the disaster, whether in rescue or civilian response, stands at 836 vehicles and 6,049 workers.
As expected, the Turkish army joined the aid and launched three IAF trucks, seven transport planes, a UAV, six helicopters and 292 soldiers into the Izmir area.
Meanwhile, in the shadow of the corona and fears of an outbreak of the virus in Izmir, the Turkish Red Crescent provided about 114,500 masks and 5,000 bottles of hand sanitizer.
Those who have nevertheless been infected regardless of the earthquake in Izmir are two senior officials in Ankara: Interior Minister Suleiman Soilo and President Erdogan's spokesman Ibrahim Kalin.
"I do not think it is possible to classify the relatively limited extent of damage in Izmir as Erdogan's success, because construction in the city is considered quality, and the municipality is not under the control of the Justice and Development Party," Dr. Chai Eitan Cohen Inrojak told Israel Today. Researcher of modern Turkey at the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security and Tel Aviv University.
The city did not collapse, according to Dr. Cohen Inrojek, "because it is a modern city and the population living there is aware of the danger of natural disasters, and the socio-economic situation is high."
The senior researcher also noted that "Erdogan is currently managing the entire crisis and public relations in Izmir with Binali Yildirim, who is a member of parliament from the Izmir district. Members of the Justice and Development Party do not want to give the Republican People's Party all the prestige, In general, in an attempt to impress the local population. "