Several non-governmental organizations have confirmed the mobilization of troops and resources to assist the victims of the 7.4 magnitude earthquake registered during the early hours of Monday morning in the Turkish province of Kahramanmaras, located near the border with Syria, which has left more than 1,300 dead in both countries.
«All our teams are preparing against the clock to respond to the devastating earthquake that has shaken Turkey, Syria and other areas of the region this morning,» said Save the Children through its account on the social network Twitter, where it stressed that «thousands of children have been forced to flee their homes in a freezing night without shelter.»
Likewise, Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has pointed out that it is «in close contact with the authorities in northwestern Syria and southern Turkey to provide better support based on their needs and to support the people affected by the earthquake».
MSF has further highlighted that its teams «have been responding in northern Syria since the early hours.» «In Idlib we are treating patients in the hospitals we support and our teams have donated emergency medical kits to other facilities in the region,» he detailed.
«Fortunately, our teams and families are doing well and we are in constant contact with all of them. We are also in contact with the health authorities to try to provide medical care to as many affected people as possible,» said MSF Syria coordinator Sebastien Gay.
In this line, the Syrian Red Crescent has stressed that its volunteers «are in all the affected places in Hama, Aleppo and Latakia» to give aid to people trapped in collapsed buildings. «The Red Crescent and the local community are doing their best to rescue people alive from the rubble of destroyed buildings,» he stressed.
World Vision has also noted that it is working quickly to assess the potential impacts on children and communities already displaced by the earthquake. The NGO’s Crisis Response Director, Johan Mooij, said that «in the midst of a harsh winter, already very vulnerable children and families have now been shaken by this devastating earthquake, which is likely to affect thousands of people in northern Syria and southern Turkey.»
«I am devastated by this sad news, and we will do all we can to help those affected. As well as quickly assessing how we can support the relief effort, we are also confirming the welfare of our personnel in Turkey and Syria, who are safe,» he said.
For his part, the director for the Middle East of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), Carsten Hansen, has conveyed his condolences to those affected and stressed that «the earthquake took place at the worst time of the night and the worst time of the year,» according to a statement released by the organization.
«It is a disaster that will worsen the suffering of Syrians already facing a severe humanitarian crisis. Millions of people had already been forced to flee the war in the region and now many more will be displaced by this disaster. In the midst of a winter storm and in the face of an unprecedented cost of living crisis, it is vital that Syrians are not left alone,» he explained.
«The NRC is assessing the situation to provide direct support to those most affected in Syria,» said Hansen, who stressed that «a massive increase» in aid is «necessary. «We call on the international community to immediately mobilize financial resources to support collective relief efforts in Syria and southern Turkey. Every minute of delay will mean the loss of lives,» he concluded.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has confirmed that more than 900 people have been killed and more than 5,300 injured. In addition, Syrian authorities have confirmed about 240 dead and 640 wounded in areas under their control, while about 150 people have been killed and more than 340 wounded in rebel-held areas in Idlib and Aleppo provinces in the northwest of the Arab country, the Syrian Civil Defense, known as the ‘white helmets’, has said.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
