UPDATE - Miracles continue as survivors rescued 9 days after quakes in Türkiye

UPDATES WITH INTERVIEW WITH MINER WHO RESCUED SURVIVOR

By Anadolu Staff

KAHRAMANMARAS, Türkiye (AA) - Miracles continue to happen as more survivors are pulled alive from the rubble nine days after strong earthquakes devastated southern Türkiye last week.

Two brothers, Muhammed Enes Yeninar, 17, and Baki Yeninar were rescued in the province of Kahramanmaras 198 hours after the deadly earthquakes.

Muhammed Cafer Cetin, 18, was also rescued in Adiyaman province 198 hours after the quakes.

Miner Ilyas Gunes, who rescued Cetin, told Anadolu that they had spoken to relatives of the family about such things as the plan of the house, where its rooms were located, where they slept, and on which floor they lived. They also tried to discern where they may have been in the home at the moment the quake struck.

"We thought maybe they were watching TV in the living room," said Gunes, adding that Cetin later told them that he had been playing a video game at that hour.

"While we were scooping the debris under our feet with an excavator, a hole was opened over there and suddenly we heard a voice saying 'I'm here'."

Cetin's first request after being rescued was water and a hot meal, he added.

"We are very happy right now. This (saving him) has given us a wonderful, wonderful happiness here for 7-8 days, and now all our exhaustion has passed."

At least 31,643 people died in the two strong earthquakes that jolted southern Türkiye on Feb. 6. More than 80,000 others were injured.

The magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 quakes, centered in Kahramanmaras province, affected more than 13 million people across 10 provinces, including Hatay, Gaziantep, Adiyaman, Malatya, Adana, Diyarbakir, Kilis, Osmaniye, and Sanliurfa.

Several countries in the region, including Syria and Lebanon, also felt the strong tremors that struck Türkiye in the space of less than 10 hours.