The father is the president of the Greek Rescue Team and in Turkey he led all five rescue operations in Kahramanmaras
Only 20 years old Giorgos Aslanidis works with passion on the wreckage he left behind the deadly earthquake in Turkey. A little further, o head of the group Babis Aslanidis gives non-stop instructions, in the hope that life will be heard from the ruins. Babis and Giorgos are not only linked by a common name or common action on the field but by blood ties, since they are related father-son.
For five days and nights, the two fought side by side in the destroyed buildings, in Kahraman Maras, and together with the rest of the volunteer rescuers from Thessaloniki had a common goal: to locate those trapped in the rubble by contributing to the search and rescue efforts. With danger lurking at every moment and the earth shaking at regular intervals beneath their feet, there were many moments of tension and anguish, while the paternal ‘watch out’ took on another dimension in this scene of destruction and utter sadness. .
“When we went on the first day in the field, in the debris, I was left out. I didn’t go into the wreckage, but I was next to my father. I wanted to see how he operates as a team leader, but mostly I wanted to give him time, to reduce his anxiety, not to see me in the first minutes in action. The next day I also went under the rubble. I don’t know how he felt, but I do know that I could see his relieved look filled with joy when I got out and was fine. Beaten up, but strong and strong”, says the young volunteer rescuer, speaking to APE-MPE George Aslanidis.
Babis’ father has been “carrying” for many years experience on his back as president of the Group of Greek Rescuers and, in fact, in Turkey he was in charge of all five companies that were set up in the region. “Despite years of practice, you can’t help but be a bit more concerned when you’re with your child under such conditions,” he declares and at the same time explains that he knows his son’s capabilities and knowledge, since he himself trained him from a young age. “It couldn’t be otherwise, an additional stress yes of course there was, it’s your son who attempts the wreckage, but when you educate someone, when you help them understand what they should do and what not in such a case, you know how you can help them you trust This happened to George, who was trained from the age of nine,” says Babis Aslanidis.
Listening to his dad, the third-year student nods his head and adds, “Being in the ruins with my father in charge was pretty good. There is no person I know better and trust more! Having him out in the field, be it security manager it was reassuring and something that helped me to perform better, to devote myself to what I was doing, without thinking about other things. After all, in the field and in action, he is no longer just my father, he is my leader, which means that in those hours there are no objections and disagreements, we must stay away from sentimentality to be cool. After all, there are rules for our own safety as well”, notes Giorgos Aslanidis.
The shipment from Thessaloniki started after contacting the Turkish consulate. A long journey followed as they drove to Piraeus so they could transport the special equipment and from there by boat to Mytilini, then to Ayvali and then by car to the ruined city. “Traveling with our backpacks by plane would have been the most convenient for us, but that would have meant leaving behind specialized, heavy equipment and therefore less benefit to our businesses,” explains B. Aslanidis, who together with his son participate in simulation exercises for intervention in such large earthquakes four times a year.
The mission, which returned a few days ago in Thessaloniki, it consisted of 35 people – all volunteers – with some of them having also participated in earthquake operations in Albania. People who, as they say, returning, went back to their jobs, since this is not their profession. “We joined the mechanism of the United Nations and Turkish civil protection, we had specific missions with points we would attempt and there were five cases in total. The two were crowned with success. We did not pull anyone alive from the wreckage, but we identified with our machines the places where they were trapped”, describes Babis Aslanidis.
Both he and his son will never forget the first sight they saw upon entering Turkey with devastation everywhere they looked, along with a particular smell, the sour smell of destruction and death, that they will never forget…
Source: Skai
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