Atsu’s 2 shoes found in earthquake rubble …prayers to find him alive continues

Two pairs of shoes confirmed to belong to Ghanaian professional footballer, Christian Atsu Twasam, has been found among piles of  rubbles at the site he is believed to have been trapped after a massive earthquake struck his home in Turkey some 10 days ago.

Christian Atsu’s football Agent, Nana Sechere, disclosed this in a tweet on Monday and said the rescue team has given information there are five persons still suspected to be alive but trapped under the rubbles where Atsu is believed to be, the search has been frustratingly slow due to a lack of the requisite resources.

In a series of tweets, Nana Sechere noted:

“It has been 9 days since the earthquake and we still have not located Christian.

“I am at the quake site in Hatay with Christian’s family. The scenes are unimaginable and our hearts are broken for all the people affected“, Nana Sechere tweeted on @iAmNana7.

He continued: “During my time here we have been able to locate Christian Atsu’s exact room location. and we have found two pairs of his shoes.

“Yesterday we received confirmation that thermal imagery was showing signs of up to 5 lives, however, I am told that the only real confirmation of life is through sight, smell and sound, and unfortunately we were not able locate Christian.

“This is a difficult situation and we are extremely grateful to all the Turkish and foreign rescue teams, local civilians and volunteers for their efforts and response in rescuing survivors. However, we urgently need more resources, including a translator, on the ground.

“Things are moving incredibly slow and as a result of that many rescues are being delayed, and lives are being lost due to the lack of resources available to the workers.

“It is unfortunate that the club is not on the ground with us, side by side, in the search for Christian. Their position and influence, accompanied with their local knowledge would be extremely helpful. We implore the President the club and mayor of Hatay, Lütfü Savas to provide additional resources to speed up the rescue efforts as a priority.”

The 31-year-old Atsu plays for Turkish Süper Lig club Hatayspor and the Ghana Black Stars.

He was decleared missing after the earthquake disaster that struck his home in Turkey 9 days ago.

Prayers continue to be said for him across his home country Ghana and the country’s President Nana Akufo-Addo as well as other leading figures in the country have issued statements to show sympathy and express the hope he would be found alive.

The earthquake struck both Turkey and Syria and the death toll has crossed 35,000 with millions displaced.

The death toll in Turkey has climbed to 29,605, Turkish Emergency Coordination Center SAKOM said Sunday but gave assurance that the search for missing persons believed to be trapped under the rubble would continue.