Turkey Earthquake 2011: 2-Week-Old Infant Found Alive in Ercis
More than 400 people died in the earthquake that hit Turkey on Sunday, but three generations of one family were found alive on Tuesday after two days under the rubble.
Azra Karaduman, just two weeks old, was pulled from the wreckage of an apartment building in Ercis, Turkey, followed shortly thereafter by her mother, Semiha Karaduman, and her grandmother, Gulsaadet Karaduman. Rescuers and onlookers cheered as each survivor was brought out.
Azra's father was not found.
The infant was flown to a hospital in Ankara, more than 700 miles west of Ercis, while Semiha and Gulsaadet were taken to a local hospital.
Bringing them out is such happiness. I wouldn't be happier if they gave me tons of money, rescuer Oytun Gulpinar told The Associated Press.
Family Probably Kept Warm by Bakery
The family was found huddled together, probably kept warm by a bakery that had been on the ground floor of the collapsed building. The temperature in Ercis has dipped as low as 32 degrees in the past two days.
The Karadumans were among nine people found alive on Tuesday, but rescuers are mostly finding bodies. Meanwhile, the aftershocks continue, with nearly 500 since Sunday. Some have been relatively strong, including a 5.4-magnitude temblor on Tuesday.
There is still no power or running water in Ercis, and there is not nearly enough temporary housing for all the people whose homes were destroyed.
The death toll stands at 432 two days after the 7.2-magnitude earthquake, which destroyed 2,000 buildings in eastern Turkey, near the Iranian border. Another 1,350 people were injured.
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