Earthquakes in Turkey and Syria: Exciting rescue operations
After massive earthquakes in Syria and Turkey, Zeynep was trapped under the rubble of a collapsed house for more than 100 hours before rescue workers could free her.
“She is doing well given the circumstances,” says a press release from the humanitarian aid organization ISAR Germany (International Search And Rescue), which was involved in the operation.
Zeynep died shortly after, however. “She was still laughing on the way to the hospital,” says Isar rescuer Bastian Herbst. According to him, there could be “120,000 causes of death”, such as internal injuries that were diagnosed later. However, one of the reasons for Zeynep’s death may have been the socalled post rescue death.
deadly cold blood
One of the possible causes of this phenomenon is hypothermia. The blood vessels constrict under the icy temperatures in the disaster area: This is how the body ensures that as little valuable inner heat as possible is given off to the environment via the skin or extremities.
Blood temperature drops in these parts of the body, while in the physical core, warm blood keeps vital organs functioning. But Zeynep’s rescue was complicated.
“We had to move them a lot to free them,” recalls Herbst. This process can dilate blood vessels and allow cold blood to flow to internal organs, which can lead to cardiac arrhythmia and subsequent death.
kidney damage and fibrillation
The German rescuer says Zeynep’s legs were buried under stones and rubble. She was still able to move her feet, but it’s possible that tissue in her limbs was injured. Muscle injuries release the protein myoglobin, which is responsible for transporting oxygen within tissue cells.
When the casualty is free, blood suddenly starts circulating again and floods the body with myoglobin, which can lead to kidney failure and a consequent increase in potassium levels. An excess of this mineral, in turn, causes ventricular fibrillation, with a particularly high risk of death for people with heart disease.
Strain relief may fail end
Another cause is the proverbial “dying on the beach”: “We know that from shipwrecked people: As soon as they see the rescue team, they can’t take it anymore and drown,” explains Herbst.
Stress hormones ensure that bodily functions are maintained. If this tension decreases, the result can be a radical drop in blood pressure.
Psychological reasons for a death after the rescue cannot be ruled out either: Zeynep lost her husband and children in the earthquake. “Maybe she noticed that and that took away her will to live,” speculates Bastian Herbst. “It’s something we don’t know.”