Members of the Blue Sky Rescue Team from the coastal city of Xiamen, East China's Fujian province, returned to Xiamen on Feb 21, after completing their rescue missions in Turkiye.

Government officials and citizens from the city, and Turkish friends living in Xiamen welcomed the civil rescue team at Xiamen airport, and they applauded and gave flowers to each member to thank them.

The search and rescue team arrived in Turkiye on Feb 9. During the following days they carried out search and rescue operations around the clock. The team searched and evaluated 87 buildings with a total area of over 700,000 square meters. They rescued three trapped survivors and located 43 people who had died in the disaster.

On Feb 20, the rescue team set off for home, and at the airport in Istanbul, government officials from Turkiye applauded the rescue team and thanked them one by one.

Members of the Blue Sky Rescue Team from the coastal city of Xiamen, East China's Fujian province, return to Xiamen on Feb 21. [Photo/WeChat account: simingkuaibao]

Members of the Blue Sky Rescue Team from the coastal city of Xiamen, East China's Fujian province, return to Xiamen on Feb 21. [Photo/WeChat account: simingkuaibao]

At the airport in Istanbul, a government official from Turkiye applauds the rescue team and thanks them one by one. [Photo/WeChat account: simingkuaibao]

The Blue Sky Rescue Team from the coastal city of Xiamen, East China's Fujian province are shown in a group photo with government officials from Turkiye at the airport in Istanbul on Feb 20. [Photo/WeChat account: simingkuaibao]