‘Miracle baby’ under army care

MUĞLA - Doğan News Agency

One-year-old Elif Zeynep Birdane, who survived a car crash that killed both her parents in the southwestern province of Muğla on Dec. 23, was transferred yesterday from Marmaris State Hospital to Ankara Gülhane Military Medical School (GATA) on the chief of General Staff’s order. She is reportedly in good condition now.

Maj. Erdim Zeren, who covered the baby with his coat after she was found, told the details of the incident to daily Hürriyet yesterday. “From now on, Zeynep is the daughter of the Air Force. She is under our protection. We will take care of her until she graduates from school and marries,” Maj. Zeren said.

“We are a small troop, so we have been like a family for years. [The deceased couple] was married for four years. They were on their way to attend a funeral of a relative. After we heard that the corpses of the parents were found but the baby went missing, we set out from the troop. Just after we arrived [at the scene of accident], we found Elif Zeynep 50 meters away from the car wreck.”