Chasing Life

I spent last week reporting from Turkey on the aftermath of a devastating earthquake that has killed more than 41,000 people in that country.   This type of humanitarian crisis is, of course, tragic – but there are also incredible stories of survival, hope and perseverance.   At the largest hospital in the quake zone, I met a family who believed that their 6-month-old girl had been killed when their apartment building was flattened, but they found out on social media that she had been rescued alive by a good Samaritan.   In Hatay Province, I joined a helicopter mission to deliver aid in hard-to-reach places and boarded a floating hospital where doctors were working around the clock to treat survivors.   And camaraderie was on full display in the literal shadow of another hospital – still standing on the outside but wrecked on the inside – where volunteers put up a tent in the parking lot so they could continue to perform life-saving surgeries.   The No. 1 question everyone was asking: How were earthquake survivors still being pulled out of the rubble 10 days later? Some rescue teams adhere to a “rule of fours,” but we saw that the overall conditions may have had a big effect on survival.   Another aftershock struck Turkey just yesterday, two weeks after the initial quake. Thankfully, no more widespread damage or deaths were reported.   But the people of Turkey and Syria are going to need all the help they can get to recover and rebuild. CNN’s Impact Your World team has details on how to do that here.   I will close today by telling you this: In my 20-plus years as a journalist covering natural disasters around the world, I’ve found it’s true that in the worst of times, you often do see the best in people.   Geçmiş olsun Türkiye, başınız sağ olsun.