Islamabad, 24 February 2023 (TDI): On its return from Turkiye, the Urban Search, And Rescue (USAR) team of the Pakistani Army was given a warm welcome by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).
The 33-member USAR team was met at the Islamabad International Airport by the Federal Minister for Education of Pakistan, Rana Tanveer Hussain, and Turkish Ambassador to Pakistan, Mehmet Pacaci.
The ceremony was also attended by senior members of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and staff from the Turkish Embassy in Pakistan.
Following the deadly earthquake that struck Turkiye on February 6, 2023, the USAR team of the Pakistani Army was organized and dispatched by NDMA at the Prime Minister’s request.
After taking part in a 17-day rescue operation in Turkiye’s earthquake-stricken regions, the USAR team has returned home.
Federal Minister Rana Tanveer Hussain praised the Pak Army USAR team for carrying out challenging rescue missions in Turkiye and saving lives by pulling them from the rubble.
He promised that Pakistan would do everything possible to assist earthquake victims. In this vein, he continued by saying that the NDMA had already sent aid packages to the victims.
Likewise, the Minister reiterated that assistance should continue until all earthquake victims had fully recovered.
While the Turkish Ambassador on his part thanked Pakistan for its unwavering support during this trying time. He paid tribute to Turkiye-return Pak-Army USAR veterans for their assistance to earthquake-devastated people in need.
He claimed that the Pakistani government and people were some of the very first to respond to the earthquake disaster.
He also praised the government of Pakistan and the NDMA for their additional humanitarian efforts, such as their donation drive and prompt distribution of aid supplies to those in need.
Earthquake in Turkiye
A Moment magnitude (Mw) 7.8 earthquake occurred on February 6, 2023.
It impacted northern and western Syria as well as southern and central Turkiye, at 04:17 TRT.
The epicenter of the deadly quake was 20 miles (32 km) west-northwest of Gaziantep. The earthquake had the maximum Mercalli intensity of XI.
The Modified Mercalli intensity scale, or simply the Mercalli intensity scale, is a scale used to quantify earthquake intensity. The Mercalli scale does not directly account for an earthquake’s energy, in contrast to the Richter scale.
Having an intensity of XI on the maximum Mercalli scale means an extreme level of earthquake. It causes maximum damage with few if any, structures standing destroying bridges, and opening wide cracks in the ground.
