‘I’ll never forget’: Hong Kong health workers in Turkey quake rescue mission recall sleepless nights, freezing temperatures
- Food and water shortages, language barriers among hurdles faced by team, say medical workers tasked with taking care of members’ health
- The 59-strong team was awarded inaugural Chief Executive’s Award for Exemplary Performance
Stephen Ngai Wing-sum and his medical colleagues once went without sleep for more than 48 hours and did not shower for over a week during a nine-day mission carried out by a 59-strong team from Hong Kong to help quake-stricken Turkey earlier this year.
The 40-year-old nurse said the group had to often use wet wipes when temperatures rose at noon because of a shortage of clean water.
“I will never forget the experience,” Ngai said.
He recalled feeling exhilarated when they were given a bag of five to 10 litres of water for cleaning purposes, which they used to wash their hair and body at the outdoor shower facilities.
Ngai, along with nurse Kwok Chin-fung and doctors Kinson Lau Kin-sang and Cecilia Fan Yuen-man from the Department of Health, were among a team of rescue workers from the city sent to Turkey in February to help search for survivors after a 7.8-magnitude earthquake killed tens of thousands in the region.
