Franklin Graham shares on Samaritan's Purse relief efforts following Turkey earthquake
Samaritan's Purse President Franklin Graham joins 'Fox & Friends Weekend' to discuss the organization's relief efforts in Turkey following the devastating earthquake.
Rev. Franklin Graham, CEO and president of Samaritan's Purse as well as head of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, arrived at the recently built Samaritan’s Purse Emergency Field Hospital in Antakya, Turkey, following the devastating earthquakes there this month that have taken the lives of some 40,000 people or more to date.
When entering the facility, Rev. Graham greeted staff and thanked workers for their efforts as the situation in Turkey continues to impact vulnerable families, Samaritan's Purse shared with Fox News Digital on Saturday morning.
Rev. Graham talked with those with whom he crossed paths — asking them where they were from and who they were, the organization reported.
While he was there, a patient brought in included a 14-year-old boy who had been buried alive in the rubble for more than a week.
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The evangelical faith leader entered the field hospital through the emergency room door that patients brought in by ambulance use.
As a result, he was able to witness the scope of the care the Samaritan's Purse doctors and nurses have been offering from the minute patients arrive at the field hospital until the minute they're discharged, the organization told Fox News Digital.
Samaritan's Purse doctors and nurses — at the recently built Samaritan’s Purse Emergency Field Hospital in Antakya, Turkey — speak to a patient who was injured in the recent earthquakes. (Samaritan's Purse)
Rev. Graham told "Fox & Friends Weekend" on Saturday, "We've got a 52-bed hospital, with about 100 staff [members] here. We've got operating theaters, intensive care units, a laboratory, an X-ray" unit, a pharmacy and much more, he said.
"We've got an incredible team of people here from all over the world, working here," he said.
"We'll probably be here for at least three months, maybe longer."
Given the array of injuries to so many people — many residents suffered broken bones and fractures in the devastation — he said the doctors and nurses are doing "a lot of orthopedic work."
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He added, "The doctors and nurses — we rotate them out about every two weeks … We rotate like that, so we can stay here indefinitely, really. We'll probably be here for at least three months, maybe longer, depending on what the Turkish government wants."
A Samaritan's purse nurse hugs a patient as they sit near a baby struggling with respiratory issues as a result of the earthquakes in Turkey. (Samaritan's Purse)
He noted, "The damage here is just unbelievable."
"We're helping with tents … People have no place to live. They can't go inside a building. And it's cold at night … [So] we're bringing in blankets, hygiene kits. We have water purification systems."
"Pray for the people of Turkey."
He said he believes Samaritan's Purse will be "here helping for years."
He also said, "Pray for the people of Turkey."
Rev. Graham spent time speaking with the Samaritan's Purse build team, the organization reported; this team is responsible for the construction and maintenance of the field hospital.
A baby with respiratory issues is cared for by a Samaritan's Purse nurse at a field hospital set up by the organization in Antakya, Turkey. (Samaritan's Purse)
"These build team members have worked long hours in cold conditions to construct one of our largest field hospitals, in one of the shortest set-up times for any of our [emergency] responses to date," the organization told Fox News Digital.
Rev. Graham also spoke to patients in the men’s ward of the emergency field hospital.
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He greeted people who are receiving ongoing care by physicians and nurses, the group said.
The faith leader asked about the medical care and told patients, "God bless you," as he moved through the hospital.
While he was on site, two people who had been pulled from the rubble in recent days arrived by ambulance at the field hospital.
"The two [people] had been receiving care at a facility elsewhere, but were transferred to the Samaritan’s Purse hospital to receive additional care," the group said.
"As they were rushed in, Rev. Graham was able" to witness the team at work.
Samaritan's Purse nurses gather to assist patients injured in the earthquakes. (Samaritan's Purse)
On a lighter personal note, one of the staff members told Rev. Graham that after meeting him and his son Edward in Turkey, he had now "officially met three generations of Grahams, including Billy Graham, Franklin Graham and Edward Graham."
Rev. Graham responded by saying, "We’ve got some more generations coming." (Rev. Graham has 13 grandchildren, Samaritan's Purse told Fox News Digital.)
The faith leader also asked about the medical care and told patients, "God bless you," as he moved through the hospital.
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The team of Samaritan’s Purse doctors and nurses have treated more than 530 patients since the field hospital opened this past Monday, the group reported.
A Samaritan's Purse doctor checks out a patient in the emergency field hospital set up this past week in Antakya, Turkey. (Samaritan's Purse)
The patients included a one-year-old baby boy who was fighting severe respiratory issues from cold exposure — as well as a 14-year-old boy who was buried alive for more than a week.
The field hospital is set up in the parking lot outside the Hatay State Hospital.
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Samaritan’s Purse has nearly 100 disaster response specialists on the ground in Turkey — and 50 of them are medical professionals, the organization told Fox News Digital.
To learn more, watch the video at the top of this article, or click here to access it.
