Major General Pham Van Ty, Deputy Director of the Search and Rescue Department under the General Staff of the Vietnam People's Army, the head of the delegation said that although the distance and travel time from Vietnam to Antakya was quite long, all 76 servicemen and 6 service dogs were in good health and their spirit of readiness was very high.
At the airport, the delegation spoke with representatives from the Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Authority to learn about the needs of the host country.
Previously, a 24-member team of the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security engaged in search and rescue efforts in the Turkey’s south-eastern city of Adiyaman, which is among the localities bearing the brunt of the earthquake, after they arrived in Istanbul International Airport on February 10.
The quake was the most devastating disaster to shake Turkey since the 1939 Erzincan earthquake. As of 9pm on February 13 (Vietnam time), the deadly disaster has claimed 37,000 lives, leaving thousands more injured and thousands of homes destroyed.
In recent days, the Vietnamese embassies in Turkey and Syria have deployed several practical activities to support rescue work, such as raising funds and providing essential supplies for victims affected by the earthquake.
