Student trapped under debris in Turkey shares location on WhatsApp, rescued. Watch

Boran Kubat uploaded a video to WhatsApp, describing his address in detail and begging for help.

Boran Kubat, a 20-year-old student from Istanbul, who was trapped under the rubble of an apartment block with his relatives in eastern Turkey was rescued after he shared a video message on WhatsApp describing his address in detail and begging for help.

Kubat, his mother, and uncle were in Malatya visiting relatives when the second earthquake struck on Monday afternoon. The family had re-entered the block after it survived the first earthquake in the early hours of Monday morning, but the building came tumbling down in the second, 7.5 magnitude quake in the afternoon.

The situation prompted Kubat to appeal to anyone he could via WhatsApp. “Whoever sees this WhatsApp status, please come and help. Please everyone come and rescue us now.”

Due to his detailed instructions on how to find them, rescuers were able to find the family and haul Kubat and his mother and uncle from the rubble.

“I had my telephone with me, so I thought that if I shared a video on social media, my friends could see it and they could reach us,” he told Reuters, news agency standing by the rubble. “And that is how they found us.”

Desperate earthquake survival used Instagram and Whatsapp to plead rescuers to find him and his family.#TurkeySyriaEarthquakepic.twitter.com/oS65LYeFew

— JasminDimash_Dear

Watch: Syrian boy smiles, plays with rescue workers who pulled him out of rubble

Officials and medics said on Thursday that more than 17,500 people had died in Turkey and Syria as efforts continue for a fourth day in freezing conditions to save those still trapped under rubble.

Initial rescue efforts were hampered by a winter storm that covered major roads in ice and snow and left three key airports in the area inoperable, complicating deliveries of vital aid.

Survivors are still being pulled from collapsed buildings, though disaster experts warn that the chances of saving lives drop sharply after the initial 72 hours after the earthquake are passed.

In Pics: Turkey-Syria earthquake: Hopes fade as toll crosses 17,500