After 3 weeks of waiting, the grandfather, Medhat Kilisli, met his infant granddaughter, Zahra, who is the last surviving member of his family who was lost in the devastating earthquake that struck southern Turkey and northern Syria last February.

Kilisli had been lying under the rubble of the earthquake with his five-month-old granddaughter for about two and a half days after the earthquake in Turkey until rescuers heard their cries.

After rescuing them from the rubble, each on his own, Kilisli, 69, lived 3 weeks of painful waiting before he was reunited with his granddaughter Zahra, as he traveled hundreds of kilometers from the Hatay province, where his house collapsed, to admit his eyes to his granddaughter's sight in the Turkish capital, Ankara.

Tears welled up in the eyes of the grandfather when he saw his granddaughter in a children's home run by the Turkish Family Ministry.

"You are my life, thank God I found you," he said, kissing her hands.

The earthquake claimed the lives of Kellesley's wife and daughter, Zahra's mother, his son-in-law and Zahra's brother Youssef, who was 4 years old.

Zahra did not return to her except her grandfather after the rest were victims of the earthquake (Reuters)

I'm the only one left for her

"This little girl has no mother, father, grandmother or anyone. I am the only one left for her," says the grandfather who took Zahra with him, after taking a DNA test to prove kinship.

More than 45,000 people died in Turkey, bringing the total number of earthquake victims, including those killed in Syria, to about 51,000.

The earthquake also displaced millions of people, injured 108,000, and some children found themselves far from their relatives after being transported to hospitals after being rescued from under the rubble.

Grandpa says that Zahra was the first thing that came to his mind when the earthquake woke him from his slumber, and he managed to lift her from her bed and find a safe place for them to hide in while the building was collapsing.

"This poor child was crying constantly, but she also slept for some time under the rubble," he said, hugging his granddaughter.

Finally, the rescuers heard him, and he saw the light of the rescuers' lamps and located it to them, and the rescuers pulled out Zahra first and then found her.

"I thought they were going to keep her outside until they took me out too, but I found out later that they had handed her over to the Turkish Disaster Management Authority," Kilisli said.

Members of the emergency crews took Zahra to a hospital in Mersin, and then to Ankara, where her treatment continued.

Addressing his weeping granddaughter, the grandfather said, "I am in mourning for your mother, father, grandmother, and brother. Do not worry, I will never leave you, my love."