Man rescued from rubble as death toll from Turkey's earthquake hits 51

Rescue workers have searching eight wrecked buildings in Izmir despite dwindling hope for survivors.

Rescuers search for survivors at a collapsed building after a powerful earthquake struck Turkey's western coast and parts of Greece.

A powerful earthquake hit Turkey and Greece on October 30. Source: AFP

A 70-year-old man has been pulled from the rubble of a flattened building in western Turkey after being buried under the debris for 33 hours following a powerful earthquake that struck the country's Aegean coast and Greek islands.

The death toll from Friday afternoon's quake rose to 51.

Turkish authorities have announced 49 deaths in the coastal city of Izmir, while two teenagers died on the Greek island of Samos.

The man, identified as Ahmet Citim, was rescued from the rubble of the residential "Riza Bey" building, one of the 20 residencies that collapsed during the earthquake.

Officials said 20 buildings were destroyed in Izmir's Bayrakli district, which was in the process of urban transformation due to lack of earthquake resistance.

The quake caused panic in the city and setting off tidal waves that slammed into coastal areas and islands.

Turkey is crossed by fault lines and is prone to earthquakes. In 1999, two powerful quakes killed 18,000 people in northwestern Turkey.

The Friday earthquake, which the Istanbul-based Kandilli Institute said had a magnitude of 6.9, was centred in the Aegean Sea, northeast of Samos.

President Tayyip Erdogan said 885 people had been injured, 15 of them critically.
Rescuers and local volunteers carry a wounded victim on a stretcher from a collapsed building after a powerful earthquake struck Turkey's western coast and parts of Greece.
A powerful earthquake hit Turkey and Greece on October 30. Source: AFP

'I will play violin for you'

Sixteen-year-old Inci Okan was trapped under the rubble of the same eight-storey building as the elderly man before being rescued 17 hours after the strong quake, along with her dog Fistik (Pistachio).

Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca and National Medical Rescue Team (UMKE) member Edanur Dogan visited Inci at hospital.

Emergency worker Dogan had held the girl's hand while rescue teams removed the debris above her.

"I am very happy. Thankfully my father was not at home. My father couldn't fit there. He would hurt his head. I am tiny. I am short so I squeezed in and that's how I was rescued. We stayed home with my dog. Both of us are well," Inci said from her hospital bed.

Inci promised to play the violin for Dogan after being discharged from hospital.

"I will play the violin for you, I promise."
A mother and three of her children were pulled to safety on Saturday after being trapped for almost 18 hours under a building in Izmir.

One of the children succumbed to his injuries later in hospital, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca told reporters in Izmir. 

Rescuers were continuing efforts to free the woman's fourth child. The mayor of the Aegean port city said around 180 people remained trapped.

"In the meantime, we are delighted to be hearing miracles happening as a result of diligent work by rescue teams," Mayor Tunc Soyer told television channel Fox TV.
Volunteers clear rubbles as they search for survivors in a collapsed building after a strong earthquake struck the country's western coast and parts of Greece.
The US Geological Survey said the 7.0 magnitude quake was registered 14 kilometres off the Greek town of Karlovasi on Samos. Source: AFP
Rescue work was punctuated by hundreds of aftershocks. By Saturday afternoon search operations had been completed in eight buildings and were continuing in nine others, officials said.

One resident said both her parents were still trapped.

"I couldn't get any news. I couldn't get any news," the woman told Reuters, when asked about attempts to reach them.

Bulldozers removed debris from collapsed buildings while rescuers dismantled walls by hand. Workers set up 300 tents for those made homeless in the city, with 600 more tents on the way.
In a rare show of warmth between Turkey and Greece - caught up in a dispute over energy exploration rights in the eastern Mediterranean - Mr Erdogan exchanged solidarity messages with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Friday.

"Whatever our differences, these are times when our people need to stand together," Mr Mitsotakis tweeted.

Mr Erdogan responded in a tweet: "Turkey, too, is always ready to help Greece heal its wounds. That two neighbours show solidarity in difficult times is more valuable than many things in life."


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4 min read
Published 1 November 2020 9:26pm
Updated 1 November 2020 9:28pm
Source: Reuters, SBS


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