ANKARA

Foreign rescuers, who took part in search and rescue efforts following the powerful earthquakes that hit Türkiye on Feb. 6, shared their experiences after receiving medals from the Turkish president.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday presented medals to domestic and foreign teams that contributed to the search and rescue efforts after the twin earthquakes hit southern Türkiye, claiming the lives of more than 50,000 people.

Julia Richardt from the German rescue team told Anadolu that they immediately landed in Türkiye and worked in the Kahramanmaras province.

"We rescued a 15-year-old girl after five days. She was alive. It was a miracle … What touched me a lot was that she said: 'Please save my books'," Richardt recalled.

Noting that it was a humanitarian apocalypse, she said all the Turkish and international teams worked very well together in the quake-hit zone.

“You know that you're not alone in this and everybody rushed to the aid and would try to get the message across that you're not alone," she added.

Golan Vach from the Israeli rescue team said his team comprising 167 rescuers and 250 physicians came to Türkiye 30 hours after the tragedy.

"We found a family on Friday night (four days after the quake). A father and his daughter were alive … We could hear a boy named Ridvan, but we could not find him. We found him after 130 hours. And this moment, when we pulled him out alive was the most exciting moment in my life," he added.

Regarding the medal ceremony, he said this was so respectful and honorable. "I feel honored to be here to represent the State of Israel, the connection between two countries," he added.

Spanish rescuer Roberto Arranz said they deployed an emergency medical team in the Iskenderun district of Hatay province.

"We stayed there for six weeks under the coordination of AFAD, Ministry of Health, and UMKE. We were able to assist more than 7,000 people," he said, praising all the Turkish people who supported the team during their mission.

'Search, rescue missions should have no political boundaries'

Alvaro Rodriguez, UN's resident coordinator in Türkiye, said he has been to all of the quake-hit provinces, which allowed him to see the progression from the search and rescue to the humanitarian phase.

"We hope that we're now moving towards the early recovery, full recovery, and eventually the reconstruction phase. We hope within a year, even 18 months, it will be a great accomplishment for Türkiye," he said.

Regarding his visit to Kahramanmaras, he said: "You could smell the bodies … Every few minutes, they were discovering more and more bodies. So it's the kind of thing that you do not forget easily."

Türkiye experienced the largest international search and rescue operations in world history, he added.

"Humanitarian issues and search and rescue missions should have no political boundaries, no geographical boundaries, and all countries were represented here. So it's a wonderful example of the community of nations," he added.

Pham Van Ty, head of the Vietnam People's Army's rescue and relief team, said their 76-member team stayed in Hatay for 11 days.

"The most important thing we witnessed is the great loss in Hatay. We feel very sad about the situation," he said, underlining the importance of uniting together to cope with natural disasters.

French Lt-Col. Cyrille Chauveau, who visited Hatay, said two moments during his experience in Türkiye are engraved in his memory for life.

"Hatay looked like a bombed city. And those families – with the utmost decency – were waiting for their family members, whether alive or unfortunately deceased. It is the Turkish people's decency that marked my mind," he said.

"Our thoughts remain with the Turkish people, particularly with the families we contacted, those to whom we returned the bodies of their family members. I regularly think of them and support them," he added.

Regarding the medal, he said it is a real honor for his team, the military teams of civil security, and France as well.

'Despite being bruised, people stayed strong'

French Ambassador to Türkiye Herve Magro said he was in Hatay, which gave him quite a large picture of the devastation.

"It is an earthquake, an unequaled disaster in decades. So, Türkiye will have to put in considerable effort and the international community will have to play its role. Either way, as France, we are, of course, ready," Magro said.

"We are standing with the Turkish people in this challenge, which is a hard one, but we believe Türkiye will rise," he added.

Capt. Jibril Sall, chief of the Senegalese firefighter detachment, said they were mainly touched by the size of the damage and the solidarity in Hatay.

"People, despite being bruised, stayed strong and kept solidarity, and everyone was looking to help each other," he said, adding that receiving a medal is a pride and gratitude.

Mykhailo Hryh, deputy general of the Ukrainian rescue team, said they were deployed in Hatay with a group of 77 persons, 10 dogs, and 16 trucks.

"We have seen all the tragedy of the Turkish people. From the very first hours, we started helping local people to survive in terrible events," he said, adding that they rescued one person after five days.

Alexandr Tatarov, the deputy head of the Moldovan General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations, said they stayed in Hatay for a week.

“We saved a 3-year-old boy … We worked in a large territory and tried to do our best," he said, adding that receiving a medal for his efforts is an honor for him.

Over 11,300 personnel from 90 countries came to Türkiye after the twin quakes, and 60 countries and international organizations sent nearly 250,000 tents to the southern region