Dutch rescue workers pulling a woman from the rubble area Photo @USARNL / Twitter
Turkey – After a week of searching the rubble in the aftermath of the massive 7.8 and 7.6 magnitude earthquakes, search and rescue teams are ready to head home.
Dutch rescue workers from the Urban Search And Rescue unit (USAR) as well as the Hungarian rescue team are returning home. The Dutch team pulled 12 people and a dog alive from the rubble while the Hungarians rescued 17 survivors including three children.
The devastation left by the earthquake is indescribable. Oliver Schweikart, squad leader of the German rescue team, witnessed massive buildings being reduced to nothing but rubble. The destruction was of such a large scale that it was almost impossible to decide where the team should start their mission. His team consisted of dogs as well as technical experts totalling fifty people.
The Greek rescue team also returned home after their mission. Their team consisted of 36 officers from the Special Disaster Response Unit as well as eight doctors, three rescue dogs, eight ambulances and paramedics and three special rescue vehicles.
As the days go by, finding survivors after 120 hours becomes unlikely. The Taiwan rescue team is set to return from Turkey on February 15. The Turkish government has already begun to send heavy equipment into the worst hit areas which makes further rescue efforts unlikely.
While rescue teams will be returning home, NGOs like Progetto Arca from Italy will increase their efforts to assist people. Bruno Grande, from Progetto Arca, explained he came to see first hand what the people need. Now that they know what is needed, they will try their best to get the people what they need.
