A Taiwanese search-and-rescue team on Wednesday pulled a woman out of the rubble in earthquake-stricken Turkey, but she later succumbed to her injuries, the National Fire Agency said yesterday.
The team working alongside Turkish rescuers in Adiyaman Province retrieved the woman at about 8:40pm after five hours of work.
The woman at one point lost all vital signs during the rescue effort, but was resuscitated and rushed to Adiyaman Education and Research Hospital, but could not be saved, the agency said.
Photo courtesy of the Taipei Fire Department
The team the same night found another person trapped under debris, and was using stone crushers in their rescue effort, it added.
A magnitude7.8 earthquake early on Monday struck southeastern Turkey and Syria’s northeast, killing more than 16,000 and injuring more than 40,000.
The UN has listed the TPE-10 Taiwan Special Search and Rescue Team on its official Web site, which “is a breakthrough since our implementation of international humanitarian rescue missions,” the fire agency said.
Photo courtesy of the National Fire Agency
A second Taiwanese team arrived in Adiyaman yesterday morning to join rescue efforts.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) yesterday conveyed their condolences in person to Turkish Representative to Taiwan Muhammed Berdibek.
“My heart goes with our Turkish friends,” Tsai wrote in a book of condolence, the Presidential Office said in a statement.
Photo courtesy of the Taipei Fire Department
“At this painful moment, Taiwan will firmly support Turkey,” Wu wrote, the ministry said.
Berdibek thanked the government for sending search teams immediately after the earthquake and donating US$2 million to Turkey, it said.
Tsai and Vice President William Lai (賴清德) would each donate one month’s salary to Turkey for humanitarian relief efforts, Presidential Office spokeswoman Lin Yu-chan (林聿禪) said yesterday.
Photo: Reuters
Premier Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) and Vice Premier Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) would also each donate one month’s salary, Executive Yuan spokesperson Chen Tsung-yen (陳宗彥) said.
The Democratic Progressive Party caucus is to donate NT$500,000 (US$16,629) for disaster relief, while the Taiwan Statebuilding Party is collecting relief supplies at its office in Kaohsiung.
The Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation said it has donated 8,148 blankets to the Taipei Economic and Cultural Mission in Ankara to be distributed to earthquake survivors.
Photo: Wang Chu-hsiu, Taipei Times
The Lin Rong San (林榮三, founder of the Taipei Times) Foundation of Culture and Social Welfare also donated NT$10 million.
Although the earthquake also caused casualties and severe damage in Syria, Taiwan has been unable to send help there due to a lack of direct communication channels between Taipei and Damascus, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Jeff Liu (劉永健) said.
The ministry would ask the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Jordan to seek suitable channels to cooperate with non-governmental organizations to provide help to survivors in Syria, he said.
People in Taiwan who want to donate to earthquake relief can wire money to the Central Bank Department of the Treasury account No. 270750, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said.
The name of the Ministry of Health and Welfare disaster relief account must be provided in Chinese (衛生福利部賑災專戶), the ministry said.
No banking fees would be charged for donations, it said.
Donations can also be made via postal transfer using Postal Giro No. 50269506 and the same account name, it said.
People overseas can wire funds to Mega International Commercial Bank Foreign Department account No. 007-09-11868-0 with the same account name, it added.
Additional reporting by CNA
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