Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday got acquainted with the work of rescue teams, including Tajik rescuers, during his visit to the Hatay province, according to the Emergencies Committee under the Government of Tajikistan.
“He highly appraised the work of our rescuers and expressed sincere gratitude to the government of Tajikistan and the Tajik people for the assistance and support provided in such a difficult time for the Turkish people,” Ms. Umeda Yusufi, a spokeswoman for the Emergencies Committee, said.
Recall, Tajikistan sent a group of 50 rescuers and doctors, as well as 2.5 tons of special equipment, to Turkey on February 9 to help deal with the aftermath of the February 6 earthquake.
This is the first time that rescuers from Tajikistan have traveled abroad to provide assistance and participate in disaster relief efforts.
Over ten days of recue-and-search operations, Tajik rescuers have saved three people and pulled 214 bodies from the rubble.
Tajik rescuers reportedly saved three people, including two children, in the earthquake-hit Kahramanmaras province.
On February 11, Tajik rescuers reportedly pulled a man his six-month-old son alive from under the rubble of a collapsed of a building. According to statement released by the Emergencies Committee, they were trapped under the rubble of the building for six days
Turkiye’s Anadolu Agency (AA) reported on February 12 that Tajik rescue workers have found and pulled a 3-year-old baby alive from under the rubble of a collapsed building. He reportedly spent 158 hours there.
The operation was carried out with use of special devices for detecting people under rubble, according to AA.
Since February 18, Tajik rescuers have reportedly worked in Hatay province.
A devastating earthquake of 7.8 on the Richter scale hit Southern Turkiye in the early hours of February 6 (4.17 am local time), with epicenter in the Pazarcık district of Kahramanmaras province.
