A ceremony was held at the Federal Police Department with the participation of the new Ambassador of Turkey to Buenos Aires, Süleyman Ömür Budak, and the Minister of Security, Anibal Fernandez.
After the speeches, a certificate of appreciation was presented to the members of the Argentina search and rescue team.
In his speech here, Ambassador Budak thanked the team and said, “We are grateful for your bravery and dedication after the devastating earthquake in our country. The lives you saved gave us hope. Your perseverance and determination will always remind us of the importance of solidarity.”
Minister of Security Annibal Fernandez stated that they discussed the situation with President Alberto Fernandez after the earthquake and said, “We had a 20-year preparation to combat such undesirable events. We moved to the region with the doctor, communication team, fire department and two expert dogs. At the end of 8 days, 3 people were killed. We managed to get him out alive,” he said.
“Language was the biggest obstacle, but his eyes could tell us everything”
Daniel Iglesias, one of the team members, stated that they saw a great destruction when they arrived in Turkey and said, “Everything we went through there, the suffering of the people, the 50 people we found lifeless and the effort we made to get the children out of the rubble will not be forgotten. All of this affected us a lot but also strengthened us. ‘ he said.
Lourdes Dominguez Melchor, another member of the team, said that when they arrived in the area, they saw much greater destruction than they thought.
Melchor said, “We didn’t understand what they were saying, but we could grasp it from their facial expressions. Even though language was the biggest obstacle, their eyes could tell us everything.”
Argentine search and rescue team, which went to Turkey on February 10, supported the work in Hatay Antakya for 10 days.