Direct Earthquake in Turkey and Syria, last minute
Earthquake The difficult aid to a Syria at war
The NGO Halklarin Koprusu -bridge between peoples- has been assisting refugees residing in Turkey for years.
From their office in Izmir, on the Aegean coast, they help in particular migrants and refugees who live in the region or who are returned to the Turkish coast by Greek patrol boats.
Following the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that devastated the southeast of the country, they have completely reshaped their work.
Since Monday
his office has become a logistics center to receive, catalog and send humanitarian aid.
to the provinces affected by the earthquake.
It is one of the dozens of offices converted into emergency centers in the city.
"We work with refugees but now there are homeless people throughout the region. We try to distribute the material to everyone," says one of the volunteers.
During the day on Wednesday
, hundreds of boxes of diapers, prepared baby food and compresses have arrived.
.
Also a lot of thermal clothing to withstand hours on the street in sub-zero temperatures.
"Twice a day a truck comes and goes straight to the southeast," she adds.
The organization also coordinates various translators on the ground, who assist refugees and help coordinate local rescue teams with emergency services sent by fifteen countries, including Spain.
In Izmir, small local organizations, political parties and neighborhood organizations have been able to collect thousands of boxes of humanitarian aid but do not have the means to deliver it.
"
It took us more than ten hours to get a vehicle to send the boxes.
Several trucks have left since Monday but they still haven't returned. We even sent a construction truck," says Nazlan Akbas, who coordinates one of the delivery points. city pickup.
For his part, Anil Sik organized another trip with members of a leftist organization and on Tuesday they left for the affected area in a van loaded with humanitarian material.
"It took us more than 24 hours to get there because the accesses are collapsed. There are many cars, some without gasoline, in other parts the road is affected," he explains.
"We bring winter tents and construction material so we can help remove rubble."
Part of the tools will go to the hundreds of miners who have traveled to the southeast of the country to help with the rescues.
"We have been informed that the miners do not have enough material to work with.
In some areas there are not even cranes to remove rubble .
", he explains. After donating part of the material in Adana, one of the areas affected by the earthquake, the group will go to Hatay, on the Mediterranean coast, where there are collapsed buildings where rescue teams have not yet been able to reach "Many people criticize that the authorities have left them alone, that help is not coming.
It hasn't had water for days and they're sleeping rough in the middle of winter.
Civil aid can reach these sites and coordinate other types of needs," he concludes.
In Izmir, two sports halls have been set up to collect boxes from various local organizations and send the material with the buses of the local football and basketball teams.
"Here we experienced a magnitude 7 earthquake just three years ago.
We know what it's like to lose your home in a moment, to be cold for days
after losing your home waiting to hear from a family member or friend who is under the rubble," explains Deniz, one of the volunteers.
"Another truck leaves in an hour, it's already the third round trip he's made since Monday," he describes.
Dogukan traveled to Adiyaman, another of the areas affected by the earthquake, after organizing with several university colleagues.
"We have brought batteries for mobile phones, electric stoves and dozens of quilts. Our intention was to come and return for more resources but the truth is that it has been very difficult for us to enter. Among the rescue teams, ambulances and other cars, we have not been able to access to some areas," he says.
"For two more days we will stay in the area helping people. At the moment we are making lists of people admitted to hospitals in the area and in other provinces, in case someone does not find a relative, to be able to connect them with each other," he details. .
"There are a lot of people working on the ground and it's very chaotic.
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