President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan reached across the aisle on Saturday to personally call CHP leader Özgür Özel with heartfelt wishes for the recovery of Manisa Mayor Ferdi Zeyrek, who remains in critical condition following a harrowing electrocution accident.
The incident unfolded on Friday, when Zeyrek, the mayor of Manisa’s Yunusemre district, was electrocuted while inspecting a malfunction in the pool equipment at his home.
The electrocution stopped his heart for 70 minutes.
Emergency responders performed continuous CPR at the scene and during transport to Manisa Celal Bayar University’s Hafsa Sultan Hospital, where advanced life support including ECMO was employed to revive him.
Hospital officials described Zeyrek’s survival as “extraordinary,” calling the prolonged cardiac arrest a rare “resistant” case.
Though his heartbeat was restored, doctors remain cautious about potential brain damage from the extended oxygen deprivation.
As of Saturday, Zeyrek’s condition remained critical but stable.
Thousands of Manisa residents rallied outside the hospital, offering prayers and support to the beloved mayor who has long been a unifying figure across party lines.
CHP leader Özel, who had accompanied Zeyrek on local visits earlier that day, was quick to update the public, calling the revival a “miracle” while tempering hope with caution about lasting effects.
Against the backdrop of a political rivalry, Erdoğan’s call to Özel resonated beyond a mere personal gesture.
The conversation, described as constructive and sincere, marked a rare thaw in the frosty relations between Türkiye’s ruling AKP and opposition CHP parties, often locked in bitter struggle.
Erdoğan expressed sadness over the accident and emphasized his hope for Zeyrek’s recovery, signaling an acknowledgement of the mayor’s stature as a respected and popular leader in Manisa.
