A FIREFIGHTER from Leigh has helped to save the life of a woman trapped underneath a collapsed building for almost a week, as part of their assistance in the rescue missions in Turkey.
Steve Pennington, from Leigh, is part of the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service team that flew out to Turkey last week after two devastating earthquakes hit the southern region of the country and northern Syria.
More than 30,000 people are reported to have been killed in the earthquake as countless buildings collapsed on themselves.
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Steven, along with three other Greater Manchester firefighters, are part of the 77-strong International Search and Rescue Team, which is trying to save as many lives as possible as thousands of others have been left trapped under the rubble across Syria and Turkey.
On Sunday, February 12, the Government's Foreign Office tweeted a video of Steven and the team saving a woman's life who was trapped underneath a building in Hatay, Turkey, for almost a week.
Another video showed Steven and the team rescuing a woman who was then reunited with her young daughter.
A spokesperson for the GMFRS said that Steven and the team are doing "amazing, life-saving work and we're incredibly proud of all of them."
WATCH: The dramatic rescue of a woman stuck in a collapsed building in Hatay, Turkey. Listen to the relief in her voice after being trapped for nearly a week.
— Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (@FCDOGovUK) February 12, 2023
The UK government funded @UK_ISAR_TEAM spent 17 hours tunnelling through wreckage, tracing her voice. pic.twitter.com/EzPjou553F
Assistant Chief Fire Officer Barry Moore added: “Our thoughts go out to the many thousands across Turkey and Syria who have tragically lost loved ones and livelihoods in these earthquakes, and to the emergency responders working to locate and rescue survivors.
"We know that those rescue efforts are taking place in challenging winter conditions, compounding what is already a very difficult operation.
“Four of our firefighters have now arrived in Turkey and will rapidly be deployed to assist search and rescue operations in the affected areas.
"As part of the UK-ISAR team, they are trained in the use of specialist skills and equipment and ready to respond to any humanitarian disaster that takes place anywhere in the world.”
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