Hero rescue dogs returning from Turkey have been promoted to first class in honor of their service.
After all their hard work, Turkish Airlines did not want to take the dogs in the cargo hold.
The 7.8 magnitude earthquake on February 6 killed more than 45,000 people in Turkey and thousands more in neighboring Syria and completely destroyed hundreds of thousands of buildings.
A Turkish Airlines spokesperson told MailOnline: “As we have experienced an exceptional time during our evacuation operations due to earthquakes in our eastern regions that have affected our entire country and nation, we are flying our heroes the rescue teams with their dogs .which is rented for this period in the cabin (also in Business Class).
“It was the least we could do to show our appreciation for the sincere and heroic efforts of these heroic dogs.”
Turkish Airlines said the gesture was “to show appreciation for the sincere and heroic efforts made by these heroic dogs”.
A Turkish Airlines spokesperson said: “As we have experienced an exceptional time during our evacuation operations due to earthquakes in our eastern regions that have affected our entire country and nation, we are flying with our heroes the rescue teams with their dogs who can be rented in the cabin during this period (also in business class)
Rescue dogs have been sent to Turkey from a number of countries, including the US, UK, Croatia, Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Libya, Poland and Switzerland.
Turkish Airlines told Insiders it also flew in dogs from Thailand, Kyrgyzstan, Hungary and China.
On February 7, a day after the 7.8 earthquake, Mexico announced that it would send some of its famous search and rescue dogs to help locate people buried under the rubble.
A plane with 16 dogs on board took off from Mexico City.
Seismic Mexico has highly specialized civilian and military teams that are often deployed to provide support in disaster situations.
The dogs saved several lives during the country’s 2017 earthquake.
Frida, a golden Labrador who served in the Mexican Navy, became a national icon in Mexico after she was photographed wearing glasses and boots.
Although Frida died last year, one of her comrades from the 2017 rescue effort was among those helping in Turkey, BBC News reported.
Dogs are often used in rescue efforts in areas where the use of heavy machinery could further collapse the debris and endanger the lives of survivors.
The dogs are trained to detect people and alert their handlers by barking and clawing at the ground where the smell is strongest.
Turkish Airlines also provided free flights to evacuees after the earthquake.
“We evacuated a total of 296,819 civilians using 1,646 flights,” Yahya Ustun, senior vice president of media relations at Turkish Airlines, wrote on Twitter on February 21.
The airline also provided free cargo transportation for urgent medical supplies to aid in the recovery and reconstruction of earthquake-hit areas.
The airline said it is donating free carrier bags at airports so other pets can be safely taken on planes for evacuation flights.
“We also want to thank our friends from abroad for their overwhelming support and help in responding to the crisis, as well as our missions, embassies and consulates for coordinating to bring relief supplies from other countries to the affected region with our cargo flights , ” Prof. Dr. Ahmet Bolat, the chairman of Turkish Airlines, in a statement.
“Our national airline will remain with our citizens in the future with all its possibilities.”
According to the airline’s website, Turkish Airlines’ network includes 121 countries and 342 airports.
After all their hard work, Turkish Airlines did not want to take the dogs in the cargo hold
Rescue dogs have been sent to Turkey from a number of countries, including the US, UK, Croatia, Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Libya, Poland and Switzerland
Rescue workers pulled a dog alive from a collapsed building in southern Turkey three weeks after last month’s deadly 7.8 magnitude earthquake, local media reported yesterday.
Crews from a local community in central Turkey rescued the dog Aleks on Wednesday and handed him over to Haytap, a Turkish animal welfare organization in the city of Antakya.
A video from the DHA news agency shows rescuers reaching out between two large concrete slabs and calling out to the trapped dog.
Footage shows rescuers hugging the dog, who appeared alert and healthy, and offering him water.
Rescue workers rescued hundreds of trapped cats, dogs, rabbits and birds that were being cared for by local residents in Antakya, one of the cities leveled by the disaster.
After the deadliest earthquake in its modern history, Turkey faces the daunting task of clearing hundreds of millions of tons of debris, some of which is potentially harmful.
The Feb. 6 earthquake and aftershocks caused at least 156,000 buildings to completely collapse or be damaged to the point of demolition, Turkish authorities said, pulverizing entire parts of cities to concrete and steel.
The UN Development Program said the resulting 116 to 210 million tons of debris would cover an area of 100 square kilometers (40 sq mi) if dumped to a height of 1 meter. It is about the size of Barcelona.
Turkey’s President Tayyip Erdogan, who is expected to hold elections on May 14, has promised to rebuild the homes within a year, although experts have warned that safety must come before speed.
An official said bids and contracts for some projects have already been finalized and safety is not at risk.
Emergency services search for people inside a destroyed building in Adana, Turkey on February 7, 2023
Dogs are pictured in the first class cabin of a Turkish Airlines flight
A rescue dog is pictured at the airport before boarding a Turkish Airlines flight
Turkey’s opposition alliance broke up on Friday after one of its leaders refused to back a joint candidate against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The cracks emerged a day after the six leaders of the opposition parties held a meeting in Ankara to discuss who should run against Erdogan in the May 14 election.
Five parties have backed Kemal Kilicdaroglu, a former official who heads Turkey’s secular party, as the front-runner in efforts to end Erdogan’s rule.
But Meral Aksener, leader of the nationalist Iyi party, opposed Kilicdaroglu and instead supported the popular opposition mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, or Ankara mayor Mansur Yavas.
“I am sorry to say that the table of six until yesterday could not reflect the will of the nation in its decisions,” Aksener said after meeting her party MPs on Friday.
She said her party was forced to vote for Kilicdaroglu, adding: “We will not bow to that.”
Turkey faces crucial elections on May 14, three months after a devastating earthquake struck several provinces.
The opposition bloc is due to announce its joint candidate next Monday.
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Elizabeth Cabrera is an author and journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a talent for staying up-to-date on the latest news and trends, Elizabeth is dedicated to delivering informative and engaging articles that keep readers informed on the latest developments.
