The fallout from the devastating earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria earlier this week continues to shock the world.
At the time of writing, over 12,000 people have been confirmed as dead following the natural disaster, which occurred on Monday and registered magnitude 7.8 on the richter scale.
A huge-scale relief effort has been launched, with thousands combing the rubble for survivors trapped under leveled buildings. While it’s expected that the death toll will continue to rise, there have been moments of mercy over the last few days; miracles that have given hope to those watching on in horror.
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One such moment took place early on Wednesday, when a video of a seven-year-old Syrian girl protecting her little brother beneath the ruination of their home surfaced on social media.
As per reports, the video – which was uploaded to Twitter – shows the terrified siblings stuck under the rubble – the older sister had placed her hand over her brother’s head in an effort to protect him.
Authorities were fortunately able to rescue the children, and they’ve now become something of a symbol for the ongoing relief effort.
United Nations (UN) representative Mohammad Safa revealed that the sister and brother had been stuck under the rubble for 17 hours.
“The 7-year-old girl who kept her hand on her little brother’s head to protect him while they were under the rubble for 17 hours has made it safely. I see no one sharing. If she were dead, everyone would share! Share positivity…” Safa tweeted.
As per survival experts, the window for rescue is closing fast on survivors, though it is not yet too late to abandon hope.
Natural hazards expert Steven Godby told Sky News: “The survival ratio on average within 24 hours is 74%, after 72 hours it is 22% and by the fifth day it is 6%.”
All our thoughts and prayers go out to the families affected by this earthquake.
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