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Russia ready to send two planes with rescuers to quake-hit Turkey — ministry

As many as 284 people were killed in the deadly earthquake in Turkey

MOSCOW, February 6. /TASS/. Russia is ready to send two Il-76 planes with rescuers to Turkey to help eliminate the consequences of the deadly earthquake, Russia’s Emergencies Ministry told TASS on Monday.

"The Emergencies Ministry of Russia is ready to send rescuers to the Republic of Turkey to help eliminate the consequences of the devastating earthquake that occurred in the province of Gaziantep at night," the ministry said in a statement.

Russia’s Emergencies Ministry has put 100 staff of the Centrospas airmobile rescue squad and the Leader Center for High Risk Rescue Operations on standby on an instruction from Emergencies Minister Alexander Kurenkov, it said.

Russia’s Emergencies Ministry is always ready to render assistance to a friendly state whose citizens have found themselves in a difficult situation, the minister said.

"Our rescuers have all the required expertise and equipment to eliminate the consequences of such emergencies and are already prepared to depart for the quake-hit area," Kurenkov said.

As many as 284 people were killed in the deadly earthquake in Turkey, according to the latest data.

Russian rescuers have vast experience of emergency humanitarian response to heavy destruction caused by natural and man-made disasters. Russia’s Emergencies Ministry earlier helped Turkey eliminate the consequences of other deadly earthquakes, including the most devastating tremor that hit the country in 1999.

Rescuers of Russia’s Emergencies Ministry have been certified under the standards of the International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG) that operates under the UN coordination humanitarian mechanisms. The Centrospas group has been certified as a ‘heavy class’ squad under the INSARAG international standards.