By Justin Spike, Abdelrahman Shaheen and Suzan Frazer —
The Associated Press
Rescuers rescued this Saturday five members of the same family who survived for five days in the ruins of their home in Turkey after the powerful earthquake that shook the border region with Syria.
The number of deaths in the tragedy now exceeds 25,000 people, authorities confirmed this Saturday.
A mother and her daughter, Havva and Fatmagul Aslan, were the first to emerge from the mountain of rubble in the town of Nurdag, in the province of Gaziantep, one of the most affected by the catastrophe, according to HaberTurk.
The teams later reached the father, Hasan Aslan, who insisted that they save his other daughter, Zeynep, and his son, Saltik Bugra, first, the station said.
Turkish rescuers carry Ergin Guzeloglan, 36, to an ambulance after pulling him out of a collapsed building five days after an earthquake struck in Hatay, southern Turkey, early on Saturday, February 11, 2023. Can Ozer / AP
Hasan was rescued last.
Rescuers clapped and chanted
“God is great!”
as the man was taken to an ambulance.
[Thousands of people offer to adopt a baby who survived the earthquake in Syria]
Two hours later, a 3-year-old girl and her father were pulled from the rubble in the city of Islahiye, also in Gaziantep province, and an hour later a 7-year-old girl in Hatay province was rescued, nearly 132 hours after the earthquake.
The rescues bring the number of people rescued on Saturday to 12, despite waning hopes amid freezing temperatures.
"What day is today?"
Kamil Can Agas, a 16-year-old rescued in Kahramanmaras, asked rescuers, according to NTV television.
Ergin Guzeloglan, 36, on Saturday, February 11, 2023. Can Ozer / AP
Members of the Turkish and Kyrgyz teams hugged, as did the boy's cousins, and one of them yelled:
“He's out, bro.
He has gone out.
He is here ”
.
[They record the miraculous rescue of a baby: her mother gave birth before dying in the rubble of the earthquake in Turkey and Syria]
The rescues offered glimmers of joy amid the devastation days after Monday's 7.8-magnitude earthquake toppled thousands of buildings, killed 25,361 people in the two countries, injured another 80,000 and left millions homeless, according to data. from NBC News.
A quake of nearly the same magnitude, which was likely triggered by the first, caused more destruction just hours later.
In Turkey, the number of fatalities rose to 21,848 this Saturday, as confirmed by the president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
While in Syria 3,513 deaths were registered.
The dramatic video of the rescue of a baby who survived almost four days under the rubble in Turkey
Feb 10, 202301:12
In the Turkish city of Antakya, rescuers transferred 36-year-old Ergin Guzeloglan to an ambulance after pulling him out of a fallen building.
But not every story had a happy ending: early on Saturday, workers reached a 13-year-old girl trapped in Hatay province and intubated her.
But the young woman herself died before doctors could amputate a limb
and free her from the rubble, the Hurriyet daily reported.
["Dad is here, don't be afraid." Exciting rescue of a girl buried under the rubble by the earthquake in Turkey and Syria]
Although experts say that
the trapped people can live a week or more,
the chances of finding survivors diminish with the passage of hours.
Rescuers began using thermal cameras to detect signs of life in the rubble, an indication of how weak those trapped might already be.
Earthquake in Turkey and Syria: miraculous rescues under the rubble 72 hours after the quake
Feb 10, 202303:09
Temperatures remain below freezing throughout the region, with many people without shelter.
The Turkish government has distributed millions of hot meals, as well as tents and blankets, but continues to struggle to reach many people in need.
The catastrophe compounded suffering in a region beset by Syria's 12-year civil war, which has displaced millions of people within the country and left them dependent on aid.
The fighting has forced millions of people to seek refuge in Turkey.
The conflict has isolated many parts of Syria and complicated efforts to get aid to it.
According to the UN, the first convoy of earthquake-related aid crossed from Turkey into northwestern Syria on Friday.
People bury their loved ones, victims of Monday's earthquake, in Adiyaman, Turkey, Friday, February 10, 2023. Emrah Gurel / AP
The UN refugee agency estimates that up to
5.3 million people have been made homeless in Syria
.
Sivanka Dhanapala, UNHCR's representative in Syria, told reporters on Friday that the agency is focusing on providing tents, plastic sheeting, thermal blankets, mats and winter clothing.
Syrian President Bashar Assad and his wife, Asmaa, visited the wounded at a hospital in the coastal city of Latakia on Saturday, where the president enjoys strong support.