Zoomlion Rescue Team: Racing Against Time in Turkey’s Earthquake Ruins

On February 6, Turkey was stricken by the earthquake with a magnitude of 7.8 twice, which has caused heavy casualties and property losses. After the earthquake, Zoomlion was one of the first Chinese rescue forces to arrive at the disaster site. In the three-day rescue, Zoomlion Rescue Team rescued more than 30 survivors from the rubble ruins against the clock. At present, Zoomlion Rescue Team “joined forces” with Chinese Search and Rescue Team. 
The old woman was rescued after being trapped for more than 80 hours.
Hatay Province was one of the hardest hit areas of the Turkey earthquake. On the afternoon of February 9, the rescuers found an old woman in a ruin. The collapsed floorslabs on her body made her unable to move. She kept shouting, but her voice was getting weaker and weaker. Zoomlion Rescue Team, which was searching and rescuing nearby, rushed to the scene immediately. The ruin was formed after the collapse of a 7-storey building. The whole building, with a tilt angle of 30 degrees, had collapsed backward due to the damage of the foundation. The old woman was trapped on the second floor, and the rescue faced many difficulties.

Knowing the situation, Zoomlion Rescue Team immediately discussed with the local rescuers to develop a rescue plan. The excavator operator cleaned up the nearby collapse, and then the rescuers climbed over to rescue her. At 17:00 on February 9 (local time), the old woman was rescued. At this time, more than 85 hours had passed since the earthquake occurred.
Three-day rescue! More than 30 trappers have been rescued
After the earthquake in Turkey, Zoomlion headquarters immediately instructed the local branch to set up a rescue team to urgently mobilize personnel, materials and equipment. The first batch of five new excavators, together with urgently needed materials and rescuers, drove more than 1000 kilometers in 16 hours from Istanbul to the disaster site in Hatay Province through snowstorm and road blockade.
With the organized and orderly implementation of the rescue, Zoomlion’s rescue forces grew stronger and stronger. At present, Zoomlion equipment of various types such as excavators, crawler cranes and truck cranes have participated in the rescue in Turkey earthquake disaster areas. Through the three-day rescue, Zoomlion Rescue Team has rescued more than 30 trappers in Hatay Province.

In addition to rich rescue experience and strong emergency rescue capability, Zoomlion’s complete emergency rescue system provided a strong support for the rescue. It is understood that, since the Wenchuan earthquake in 2008, Zoomlion’s emergency rescue system has been continuously improved. It has also become a tradition of Zoomlion in the emergency rescue to cooperate with nearby customers through the Internet of Things and other means. Since then, in the process of emergency rescue for various disasters, Zoomlion’s heavy equipment has arrived at the disaster sites at the first time.
“We just want to save more survivors as soon as possible,” said the rescuer Yu Ke, Zoomlion’s on-site service engineer. Despite difficulties in the rescue of Turkey earthquake, Zoomlion Rescue Team still tried the best to guard the miracle of life in the ruins.