Statue of Mexican rescue dog Proteo to be erected in Istanbul

A local municipality in Istanbul is set to honor a late Mexican rescue dog that passed away on duty searching for survivors in Adiyaman province following the devastating February 6 earthquakes, which claimed the lives of thousands of people in Türkiye, Anadolu reports. 

"Proteo came from Mexico, miles away, and came to save our citizens under the rubble ... in these lands he had never known, and he succeeded," said Şükrü GENÇ Başkan

Sukru Genc, the mayor of Sariyer Municipality in Istanbul, according to a statement by the municipality.

"Proteo is now one of the names we owe our loyalty to. So we want to include his statue in our park," Genc added, speaking at a memorial event held for Proteo and Japanese aid volunteer Miyazaki Atsushi, who died in the 2011 earthquake in eastern Türkiye.

The event occurred at a park named after the late rescue worker Miyazaki and boasted his statue in Istanbul's Sariyer District on the European side.

Proteo, a 9-year-old specially trained K9 for the Mexican search and rescue team, died after being severely injured in the line of duty in Adiyaman. The German shepherd assisted Mexican military units and rescued two people under the rubble. The Mexican government paid him tribute and called him heroic.

Praising the international solidarity following the massive quakes in Türkiye, Genc said the solidarity has been "just like the 2011 earthquake in Van province."

"Japanese aid volunteer Miyazaki Atsushi died in the wreckage of Bayram Hotel, which was destroyed in that earthquake," Genc said. "He won the great love of the region's people with his diligent work and kindness."

Miyazaki rescued earthquake victims in Van when a magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck it on October 23, 2011, and extended his helping hand to people both as a doctor and an aid worker as part of the Association for Aid and Relief, Japan (AAR Japan). But a magnitude 5.6 quake jolted the city again on November 9, and this second quake caused his hotel to collapse to rubble, and Miyazaki was severely injured. Following intense rescue operations, he was taken out of the pile of debris but succumbed to his wounds at a hospital.

Event participants included India's Consul General in Istanbul, Sudhi Choudhary, Mexico's Consul General in the city of Isabel Arvide, and Japan's Consul General Kasahara Kenichi, as well as Sariyer Municipality Civil Defense Team.

Meanwhile, an animal rehabilitation center built in the Basiskele district of the northwestern Turkish province of Kocaeli was named after the late Mexican rescue dog.