in Turkey, French soldiers in search of victims under the rubble

The death toll from the earthquake now exceeds 9,500 in Turkey and Syria. However, all hope is not lost. And searches continue in Turkey to try to find survivors under the rubble after the two violent earthquakes on Monday. Among the people mobilized to try to find survivors, like this baby miraculously found alive, some 73 French Civil Security soldiers have been hard at work since the evening of Tuesday, February 7.

>> Earthquake in Turkey and Syria: “Here, the concrete is twisted, the metal crumpled like paper”, testifies a special correspondent from franceinfo

In an avenue in the city of Osmaniye, in the south-east of the country, plunged into darkness, the soldiers work under the light of their headlamps with the noise of cranes in the background. “A potential victim would still be alive buried under the rubbleexplains Lieutenant-Colonel Cyril. This is the information we got from our Turkish colleagues. There, we leave with a clearing rescue team to already confirm if there is indeed a person buried and alive.“

The damage is impressive. “Stones are strewn on the ground, details the lieutenant-colonel. There are huge cracks running through many buildings. The task is immense.” The French rescuers are getting up. Some return to base camps with drawn faces.

A Franco-Turkish citizen supports Civil Security to do the translation

The soldiers concentrate on an old building of eight floors completely collapsed on itself, under a pile of concrete and iron. About 32 people are potentially trapped under the rubble.

To facilitate exchanges with Turkish rescuers, the soldiers are helped by Lili, a Franco-Turkish woman. The stay-at-home mom volunteered to translate between the two groups of nationalities. “There they say they heard a person 30 minutes ago, explains Lili to the French soldiers. They’re going to take the stairs down and let you work on that area.”

Lili did not see herself staying at home after these events. “JI couldn’t stay home doing nothing. I preferred to come to translate directly on site. I live a little more on the other side, where there was a lot of damage, like here, where there are lots of tall buildings like this one, there are three that collapsed around ours. We made it out alive with my husband and kids.”

Two dogs are trying to find the presence of 32 potential victims under this rubble in Osmaniye. A radar that tracks heartbeats has also been deployed. Nothing gave. #earthquake #Turkey pic.twitter.com/Ka3dc6O1da

— Willy Moreau (@wy_mr) February 7, 2023

Dozens of Turkish rescuers painstakingly clear a pile of rubble, an old eight-storey building. 32 people are believed to be under the rubble. Two civil security dogs were dispatched to find people alive. A radar is also deployed to probe the slightest heartbeat. The verdict falls: “The radar did not give anything”, sighs a civil security soldier. The search continued all night.