Portugal first responders hope Turks ‘reconstruct this beautiful country’ as they bid adieu to quake-hit Türkiye

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ADANA, Türkiye (AA) - The people of Türkiye “received us well,” said personnel from the Portuguese search and rescue team who completed their mission Friday amid despair and difficult times due to loss of life and property from two earthquakes.

“It is very difficult for people facing the biggest problem,” said Joaqium Santos, deputy commander of Portugal’s National Authority of Emergency and Civil Protection.

“I wish people have hope to reconstruct this beautiful country and we wish all good for Turkish people,” Santos told Anadolu alongside his commander, Filepa Costa, from the National Republican Guard, or GNR.

The 52-member team along with six sniffer dogs landed in Türkiye on Feb. 8, two days after twin tremors devested Türkiye.

“We rescued alive one kid and a dog in southern Hatay province,” Costa said, adding the team carried 13 tons of equipment.

“We have doctors, one nurse, one psychologist and two paramedics,” said Costa. “As we finished the mission, we donated the medicine to a local hospital. We were self-sufficient during the mission.”

The earthquakes have affected more than 13 million people across Türkiye in 11 provinces --Kahramanmaras, Hatay, Gaziantep, Adiyaman, Malatya, Adana, Diyarbakir, Kilis, Osmaniye, Sanliurfa and Elazig.

Türkiye issued a level-4 alert, calling for international aid.

More than 249,000 search and rescue personnel are currently working in the field, according to the Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD).

More than 9,000 international search and rescue teams, including from El Salvador, have participated in post-quake operations.

Around 100 countries have offered assistance with many sending rescue teams.

Also, blankets, tents, food, and psychological support teams, along with more than 12,300 vehicles, including excavators, tractors and bulldozers were sent to affected areas.

Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that the country is facing one of the biggest disasters in its modern history.

Condolences have poured in from around the world expressing solidarity with Türkiye, with many countries sending rescue teams and aid.