The baby’s doctor – Mr. Hani Maarouf said that the baby’s temperature had dropped to 35 degrees Celsius, the body had bruises but is now in a stable condition.
The doctor guessed that the baby’s mother was conscious at birth and died shortly after. Dr Maarouf estimated the baby was born a few hours before it was found, adding: “If she was stuck there for another hour, she would have died.”
Relatives said the baby was the only living member of the family of seven.
Keep looking for hope
Rescue efforts continue in the city of Gaziantep, in south-central Turkey, near the epicenter of the recent 7.8 earthquake.
By the afternoon of February 6, rescuers had located the family in the dilapidated buildings and began cutting through concrete, metal and wood to reach the victim. The rescue team was extremely careful to limit the movement of debris, endangering those trapped below.
| Search operations in the city of Gaziantep (Turkey) on February 6. Photo: AP |
On the afternoon of February 7, a crowd of about 100 people came to see the rescue team at work. Among them are relatives of people living in the building.
A man in a black coat and muddy shoes paced around collapsed buildings. He smoked one cigarette after another.
“My wife is dead and my son is still inside,” he told the New York Times, with tears in his eyes.
A woman sat waiting for news of her 90-year-old father-in-law amid the chaos. She said that her father-in-law lived alone in the building, and he often complained to her that the building was rotten.
She said the family persuaded rescuers to remove the concrete wall they thought was his bedroom. Rescuers found some items and his bed, but did not find the old man.
“That’s not the way to die,” she said painfully, looking at the wreckage.
These stories are just a small part of the thousands of stories of families who lost loved ones after the devastating earthquakes in Turkey and Syria.
CNN Citing information from local officials, so far, the death toll in the earthquake has reached at least 9,487 people.
In Turkey, at least 6,957 people died and more than 38,000 were injured.
In Syria, at least 2,530 people are reported killed in both government-controlled and rebel-held areas.
Aid agencies and rescue workers say the death toll could rise as many people are still trapped under the rubble.