Turkish president thanks Vietnamese soldiers for rescue efforts

He called on rescue teams from Vietnam and other countries in Hatay Province on Monday.

Speaking with Major General Pham Van Ty, head of the Vietnamese contingent, he expressed gratitude for their timely support.

Ty said he “shared” the great loss of the Turkish people and promised that his team would make every effort to help stabilize their lives at the earliest.

 

 

Turkish president thanks Vietnamese soldiers for rescue efforts

Tổng thống Thổ Nhĩ Kỳ thăm đoàn cứu nạn bộ đội Việt Nam

Hatay deputy governor Yusuf Izci said the support of the Vietnamese team was a “practical gift” to local people in overcoming their difficulties and losses.

“Medical supplies donated by the Vietnamese side will be quickly delivered to local hospitals and medical support centers.”

The Vietnamese team had donated a ton of dry foods and medical supplies to the Hatay government.

The team in coordination with local rescue personnel had found 15 sites with earthquake victims trapped under the rubble, including two places with signs of survivors.

As of Sunday evening (Hanoi time) it had searched 31 locations in Antakya, the capital of Hatay, and enabled local workers to extract 28 bodies from under rubble.

It had also worked with a Bahraini team and found a site with eight bodies and with a Mexican team and found two other places with victims.

It has assisted three families in salvaging household goods.

The Vietnamese military had dispatched 76 soldiers to Turkey on Feb. 11 to aid with the rescue efforts following the deadly earthquakes in Turkey and Syria five days earlier.

Earlier the Ministry of Public Security had dispatched 24 rescuers and medical workers to Turkey, and they returned home on Sunday.

The death toll so far in the two countries exceeds 47,000, including 41,156 in Turkey, and is expected to climb further with 385,000 apartments known to have been destroyed or seriously damaged and many people still missing in Turkey, according to the country’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority.