2 pulled alive from building rubble

By Selcan Hacaoglu
The Associated Press

	AP Muhammet Kalem, 16, waves as rescue workers pull him from the rubble of a collapsed apartment building in Konya, Turkey, yesterday. The confirmed death toll stands at 83.
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ANKARA, Turkey — Rescue workers said a 24-year-old woman was pulled alive from the rubble of an apartment building today, a day after a 16-year-old boy was rescued. The structure collapsed a week ago, killing at least 83 people.

NTV television showed rescue workers applauding as the woman, Yasemin Yaprakci, was carried from the rubble to a waiting ambulance on a stretcher.

Anatolia news agency said Yaprakci was tired after her ordeal, but NTV quoted her as saying: "I am fine, don't worry."

Relief workers found Yaprakci close to the entrance of the building, where rescue officials said more than a dozen bodies were buried.

"We had detected her alive with electronic devices and sniffer dogs, as we searched for her, we heard (her) saying, 'water, water,' " said rescue official Serdar Demirel.

Yesterday, teams pulled a 16-year-old boy from the debris. The teen was shrouded in pulverized concrete that kept him warm, and he slept often, which slowed his metabolism.

The rescue workers dug out eight more bodies overnight.

Muhammet Kalem was the first survivor to be pulled from the wreckage in almost five days and his father, Ahmet, had so little hope of seeing his son again that he had already dug his grave.

The 11-floor building collapsed last Monday in Konya, about 160 miles south of Ankara. Twenty-nine survivors were pulled from the wreckage, but until Ahmet, no more had been found since Tuesday.
 
"I kept hearing the voices of rescuers," Kalem said after being pulled from the wreckage. "I tried not to lose hope thinking they would eventually find me. I fell asleep from time to time."

Kalem had bloody cuts on his face and body when he was pulled out but is in good condition, said his doctor, Riza Saribabicci.

Saribabicci said Kalem's survival with no food or water for almost six days was astonishing: "It is beyond my imagination."

Most people can survive only about two days without water, Saribabicci said. By sleeping instead of struggling, Kalem was able to reduce his need for water, Saribabicci said.

Officials blamed the collapse on shoddy construction and a Turkish court Friday charged two contractors, Vedat Kaya and Ismail Canlier, with negligence for ignoring building codes.

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