As we know, the past two weeks have been hard due to a 7.8 earthquake in Turkey and Syria. On Feb. 6, 2023, Turkey experienced one of their most destructive and strongest earthquakes. The earthquake was so powerful it even destroyed parts of Syria. As the days passed, the death toll began to increase. Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu has recently raised the death toll in Turkey to 39,672. The combined earthquake fatalities in both Turkey and Syria are now estimated to be around 43,360. This is a devastating and harsh reality that people in Turkey are starting to face.
The devastating earthquake gained international news due to the magnitude of fallen buildings and people lost. This brought the world together to help Turkey in these tough times and give aid to them. Many countries began to go to Turkey to help with searches and rescues. Countries like Mexico, the United States, the U.K., Spain, Canada, and many others have pledged aid to Turkey.
As of this week, there are still survivors from the earthquake being rescued. As reported by CNN, survivors are continuing to be found alive. On Saturday, a couple and their 12-year-old child were rescued 296 hours after the earthquake, which shows the perseverance of the victims of this powerful earthquake. More and more people are being found under the rubble as reported by NPR. Hakan Yasinoğlu, 45, spent 278 hours beneath the rubble, and Neslihan Kilic was removed from the rubble after being trapped for 258 hours. A 12-year-old boy named Osman is alive underneath a collapsed building.
The victims of this earthquake have had such perseverance to live that is inspirational. For example, “Just when our hopes were over, we reached our brother Osman at the 260th hour,” police rescue team leader Okan Tosun told DHA. This shows the tenacity of the people stuck under the rubble to survive and live. This earthquake that uprooted lives and destroyed buildings has shown miracles. This has brought people together and shown hope in some of the darkest times. This has brought the international community into working for those in need to be brought to a sort of normality.