A 7.8-magnitude earthquake that has struck north-west Syria and Turkey has left thousands of people without shelter, food and fuel. Caritas in Turkey and Caritas Syria were proving assistance from the very beginning and Caritas Internationalis Confederation is supporting and coordinating their efforts to assess the needs and deliver assistance to those affected by this tragedy. The earthquake hit areas already in a difficult humanitarian situation and the harsh winter temperatures and the destruction or severe damage to structures – including several hospitals – and roads further complicates humanitarian operations.
The Director of Caritas Syria, explains that “in Syria, earthquake heavily impacted north-west Syria, an area where 4.1 million people depend on humanitarian assistance”. Around 5,000 displaced people, mostly women and children, have found shelter in schools and halls. The recorded deaths and injuries continue to rise as the search for missing persons among the rubble of destroyed buildings and homes continues. Hospitals in some of hardest-hit areas were overwhelmed as they worked to treat those injured by the earthquake.
Caritas Syria is working to provide relief items and opening shelters to accommodate those most in need in Aleppo, Hama and Lattakia. “It is very cold and continues to rain and snow. Many have lost their homes and even those who still have a home are not returning to it for fear of further shocks”. In Aleppo, relief items and shelters for citizens whose houses were collapsed are needed. The office of Caritas Aleppo was destroyed, as were many staff houses.
In Turkey, the south-east provinces of the country including Kahramanmaraş, Hatay, Osmaniye, Adıyaman, Gaziantep, Şanlıurfa, Diyarbakır, Malatya and Adana were affected by the earthquake and 42 aftershocks, the largest of which was 6.6 magnitude.
The Diocese of Anatolia region has been strongly affected by the earthquake and the Cathedral of Iskenderun totally collapsed and the offices of Caritas Anatolia were severely damaged. “Thank God the staff is fine, but we lost volunteers, beneficiaries and even relatives,” says programme manager of Caritas in Turkey, who was in Italy at the time of the earthquake together with the organisation’s president and is now returning to Turkey.
Caritas in Turkey immediately opened a Listening Center hotline to provide support and assistance to those affected by the disaster, and is currently working alongside local authorities to gather information and organise a humanitarian response. In addition, Caritas teams have been gathering displaced people in safe and open spaces and trying to distribute some hot meals and clothes.
The Caritas Confederation are combining their efforts and working together to provide humanitarian assistance to those most in need and ask for the continued support and prayers of the international community in alleviating the sufferings of the people in Syria and Turkey at this time.