A Welsh firefighter has had an emotional reunion with his children after returning home from saving lives in Turkey, which continues to deal with the horrific aftermath of a series of earthquakes - the first of which measured 7.8 on the Richter scale - which have resulted in thousands losing their lives.
There were tearful scenes on Thursday as dad-of-two Phil Irving surprised his eight-year-old son Evan and his 14-year-old daughter Esmei by arranging to have them pulled out of class at Ysgol Caer Elen in Haverfordwest to let them know he was back home. The 46-year-old is one of 77 search and rescue specialists from 14 fire and rescue services across the UK deployed to Turkey with the UK-ISAR team through the UK Government's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
Phil - a watch manager at Harverfordwest station with Mid & West Wales Fire Service - had spent the past week saving people entombed in the rubble of wrecked buildings. As the death toll surges past 40,000 across Turkey and Syria following , Phil had cause to hug his kids a little tighter when he picked them up at Ysgol Caer Elen school, in Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire yesterday.
