Supporting the people of Turkey
12.02.23. Since the devastating earthquake on the 6th of February, teams have been working to rescue people from the rubble. Team Salam travelled out on the 8th to distribute aid and food in Adiyaman and Kahramanmaras.
What happened?
The earthquake, which struck Turkey and Syria with a magnitude of 7.8, demolished more than 1,000 buildings and killed at least 37,000 people. Many more are injured; people and bodies are still being recovered from the rubble.
Singer-songwriter Maher Zain – one of our Instagram ambassadors – travelled to Turkey with our team this month and witnessed the situation first-hand. Several regions have suffered significant damage, and aid agencies are working overtime.
What hurts the most is families waiting next to demolished buildings for good news or, at least, waiting to get their family members out to give them an honourable burial.
Helping the helpers
In Kahramanmaras, our mobile soup kitchen is serving hot, nutritious plates of rice and chicken or soup (with bread and sweets). It was set up to support victims who have lost their homes. But one of the people we fed was a rescue team member who had been so focused on pulling out survivors that he hadn’t made time to eat.
He told us: “First time I am eating in 5 days… I’ve had tea and coffee but this is the first time I am eating.”
When people – young and old – are buried under rubble, every minute is crucial, and this rescuer was determined to make the most of his time. When he ate with us, he’d already pulled out 47 people! We were proud to provide food to him and other emergency staff who had all been working extremely hard.
Supporting families
The freezing winter conditions are making the rescue mission more complicated. Families have lost their homes and are struggling to stay safe and warm. We found one elderly man sheltering beneath a slide in a park; the only place he could find to sleep, dress and eat.
Others have lost loved ones in the earthquake. Our team has, sadly, been delivering burial cloths on a very large scale.
SO FAR, YOU’VE HELPED US TO DELIVER:
- 40 TENTS
- 225 HEATERS
- 5,000 HOT MEALS
YOUR SUPPORT HAS BEEN INCREDIBLE. Thank you for enabling us to distribute vital aid in Turkey. Every meal makes a difference.
Please keep supporting our work in Turkey.
WHERE DOES YOUR MONEY GO?
“We all can do something and should do something – don’t belittle whatever small thing you can do. Many people think, oh, I don’t have so much, you know? Like, what will my $10 do for all these people? It makes a difference.” – Maher Zain (Turkey, Feb 2023).
£5 buys lunch and dinner for one.
£50 buys a heater.
£500 buys a family thermal tent.
Please, give what you can towards our relief work in Turkey:
http://www.justgiving.com/page/emergency
