A girl born under the rubble of the Turkey-Syria earthquake yesterday brought a gift of life amid the death and destruction.
But with the spectre of doom never far away in such disasters, the tot’s mother and family sadly perished.
As the number of those who died shot past 7,800 an international rescue effort was underway to try to save hundreds of people still buried.
They faced a race against time as experts fear the death toll could hit 20,000 with plunging temperatures and a danger of multiple aftershocks.
At least three Brits are missing feared dead in Monday’s 7.8 quake, which ripped through around 200 miles of the Middle East.
Rescuers plucked the baby girl from beneath a collapsed five-storey block of flats in Jindires, Syria, 10 hours after the quake struck.
The tot was still attached to mum Afraa Abu Hadiya by her umbilical cord. Rescuers separated the pair and the girl was rushed to hospital where she was last night recovering. Doctors said she was bruised but stable.
In Kahramanmaras, Turkey, grieving father Mesut Hancer was seen clinging to his 15-year-old daughter Irmak’s hand as she lay dead in the rubble.
Nearby, five-year-old Ayse Kubra Gunes was pulled from the wreckage of the six-storey building where she lived. As she lay trapped, her father spoke to her and she bravely replied: “I’m fine here. I’m fine, Dad.”
Ayse was finally rescued after seven hours. A 15-month-old baby was also pulled from the rubble in the city.
Foreign Secretary James Cleverley said 35 other British nationals have been affected by the earthquake but there was a “low”expectation of “large-scale UK casualties”. A team of 77 British search and rescue experts has joined the international effort.
Rishi Sunak “pledged the UK’s steadfast support” to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a phone call.
And the King said: “My wife and I have been most shocked and profoundly saddened by the news of the devastating earthquakes. I can only begin to imagine the scale of suffering and loss as a result of these dreadful tragedies.
“I wanted to convey our deepest sympathy to the families of all those who have lost their loved ones.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone who has been affected by this appalling natural disaster.”
Specialists from across Europe, Albania, Montenegro, Jordan and China have also offered their services to boost the 24,400 search and rescue teams already deployed by Turkey.
Even war-ravaged Ukraine pledged an 87-strong team to help out. Qatar offered 10,000 container shelters for people left homeless.
Around 380,000 survivors are sheltering in government dormitories or hotels in Turkey.
So far, 3,294 search and rescue teams from 14 countries have arrived to help the shattered region.
They were being transferred to the worst-hit provinces of Hatay, Kahramanmaras and Adiyaman across Turkey.
But disaster management agency official Orhan Tatar said: “The adverse weather conditions continue in the region. Therefore, from time to time it may be difficult to transport these teams to the region.”
Ten ships were helping the rescue efforts, by transporting the wounded to hospitals, mainly from the Mediterranean port of Iskenderun.
Syrian Arab Red Crescent chief Khaled Hboubati urged the US and EU to lift years-old sanctions imposed on the war-torn country.
He said: “This is the most important thing for us.”
World Health Organisation emergencies head Dr Mike Ryan said: “The scale of this disaster requires a sustained response.
“And the secondary impacts are going to go on for months and months, especially for those people already affected, already vulnerable for many other reasons in the region, and especially in Syria.”
Mr Erdogan declared a three-month state of emergency in 10 afflicted areas across Turkey and ordered seven days of mourning.
