97-Year-Old Recalls 9 Days in Quake Rubble

A 97-year-old told rescuers she survived nearly nine days under earthquake rubble in Bam by praying and reciting verses from the Koran, and a doctor said a low metabolism typical of the elderly helped her pull through.

Sharbanou Mazandarani was discovered Saturday, her bed protected in an air pocket between two fallen walls. She was in “remarkably good shape,” said Dr. Paul Odberg of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent.

“Just before the earthquake, her family had brought her food and drink into her bedroom,” Odberg said. “That and being wrapped up in her own bed probably saved her life.”