Crew frees boy from rubble after 108 hours

Rescuers, working under floodlights, pulled a 13-year-old boy alive from the rubble of a collapsed apartment building yesterday, over 100 hours after a massive earthquake levelled many buildings in eastern Turkey, killing at least 550 people.

A picture by the state-run Anatolia news agency showed a rescue team carrying Ferhat Tokay out of the debris wearing a neck brace. In other pictures from a field hospital, he appeared to be looking at his rescuers.

Tokay's rescue came 108 hours after Sunday's 7.2-magnitude earthquake, the agency said.

The agency said the boy was injured but did not give further details. The collapsed building from which Tokay was rescued was in Ercis, the town worst hit by the quake.

The temblor has killed at least 550 people and injured 2300 others, according to the country's disaster management directorate, AFAD's website, updated last night. Thousands of homeless in tents were struggling in the bitter cold as rain and snow brought on more hardship.

Television footage yesterday showed a rescue team cheering and clapping as another young man, wearing a red sweater and strapped to a stretcher, was also carried out of the debris. His eyes were shut most of the time, but he opened them at one point.

The Anatolia agency identified the man as 18-year-old Imdat Padak. He was rescued by an Azerbaijani crew.

Padak was flown to the nearby city of Van and was dehydrated but in good condition, according to the news agency.

Emergency officials said 187 people have been rescued from the rubble. About 2000 buildings have been destroyed and authorities declared a further 3700 buildings unfit for habitation.

More aid began to reach survivors, with Turkish authorities delivering more tents after acknowledging distribution problems that included aid trucks being looted even before they reached Ercis.

Families who did snag precious aid tents shared them with others. But some people spent a fifth night outdoors huddled under blankets in front of campfires, either waiting for news of the missing or keeping watch over damaged homes.

Foreign assistance also began arriving. Israel, which has a troubled political relationship with Turkey, sent emergency housing units, blankets and clothing. Britain said it was dispatching 1000 tents and Germany, Russia, Romania and Ukraine also contributed. A Japanese disaster rescue team was working alongside Turkish rescuers.

Saudi King Abdullah ordered a US$50 million ($61 million) donation to help Turkey deal with the aftermath of the quake, the official Saudi Press Agency said.