‘Stay strong our brotherly country’: S.Korean rescuers recall ‘deep relations’ with quakes-hit Türkiye

‘Stay strong our brotherly country’: S.Korean rescuers recall ‘deep relations’ with quakes-hit Türkiye

Leader of 120-member South Korean search and rescue team says they rescued 8 people

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ADANA, Türkiye (AA) - Recalling the “deep relations” with "brotherly" Türkiye since the Korean War of the 1950s, the South Korean rescuers on Friday said “we did our best” during the post-quakes search and rescue operations.

“We will not forget our brother country,” said Sim Jea-Cheol, leader of the Korea Disaster Relief team deployed in southern Türkiye since Feb. 07, a day after 7.7 and 7.6 magnitude earthquakes hit Türkiye, causing the death of at least 38,044 people while thousands of others were injured.

Referring to the participation of Turkish soldiers in the Korean War of the 1950s, Sim said: “We learned about our deep relations with Türkiye” since elementary-level education.

Of the 16 countries participating in the Korean War, Türkiye ranked fourth with its personnel contribution of 21,212 and lost 966 soldiers.

A total of 462 Turkish soldiers were laid to rest at the UN Memorial Cemetery in Busan, South Korea.

“Please stay strong,” he said, addressing Turkish people, using a Turkish phrase to express his condolences: “Sorry for your loss.”

The Feb. 6 earthquakes, centered in Kahramanmaras, affected more than 13 million people across ten other provinces – 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 Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD).

More than 9,000 international search and rescue teams, including those from South Korea, have participated in the post-quake operations.

Around 100 countries have offered assistance so far, with many having sent rescue teams.

Equipped with 17 tons of search and rescue tools, Sim said his team comprising 120 members rescued eight trapped people.

“We wished we could make bigger accomplishments. (But) we did our best,” he said.

The team includes one doctor, four nurses who also provided medical aid to the people, and four sniffer dogs.

“We consider dogs as most important tools during the search operation,” said Sim, adding his canines were “properly trained and are very qualified assets.”

South Korea had also sent its soldiers alongside the search and rescue team. The two teams are flying back on Friday from the international airport in southern Adana province.

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