78 people have died in a fire that engulfed an Alpine hotel in Turkey. According to authorities, all the victims have been identified. Among them are two close friends, Yiğit Gençbay, a final-year student at the Faculty of Medicine, and Alp Mercan, a mechanical engineer, both 25 years old.
According to CNN Turk, at the moment the fire broke out, Yiğit and Alp managed to get out of the hotel and tell others that they were safe. However, they heard cries for help from inside the building and decided to return to save the others. Unfortunately, this heroic gesture proved fatal for both of them. Their bodies were found lifeless after the fire was extinguished.
The tragedy has deeply affected their families and friends. The bodies of the two friends were handed over to their families after the identification process at the Forensic Medicine Institute in Ankara. Yiğit Gençbay was escorted to his final resting place at the İncek Cemetery, while Alp Mercan was buried in Gölbaşı, amidst the tears and deep pain of the family and community.
Nihan Ece Mercan, Alp's sister, recounted the close bond between the two, which began in high school. "They were always together, never separated, neither in this life nor in eternity. They are an example of courage and sacrifice," she told CNN Turk.
The event has left a huge void in everyone's hearts, remembering their heroic deed and selflessness to save other lives. (A2 Televizion)
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