Post-earthquake uprising.. Istanbul turns into a beehive to help the affected areas and sends thousands of volunteers

Istanbul

- "I felt fear when I heard the news of the earthquake, but when I began to realize the scale of the catastrophe and the death toll that was rising around the clock, I was stunned and shocked." With these words, the elderly Turkish woman Gulser describes the scene, which prompted her to make in-kind donations to those affected through a center opened by the municipality. its area.

Speaking to Al-Jazeera Net, the Turkish woman, who lives in the Bahcesehir neighborhood of Istanbul, says: "As soon as our neighbors transmitted - via the WhatsApp application - a list of the needs needed to help those affected by the earthquake and a list of the names of the centers that receive donations, until I got up and collected some blankets, pillows and canned food and packed them." In a bag, then I got into my car and went to the bazaar building of the municipality, where I handed them the bag and left.”

The city of Istanbul is experiencing the horrors of the earthquake, in light of the almost empty streets, stormy weather, and temperatures that do not exceed the freezing point, after the largest Turkish cities woke up to the shocking news of the Kahramanmaraş earthquake that struck the south of the country at dawn last Monday, which was classified as the worst natural disaster since About 100 years in Turkey.

The Turkish Emergency and Disaster Management Department opened 90 fundraising centers in Istanbul (Al-Jazeera)

after shock

While the people of Istanbul were trying to absorb the shock, the municipalities - in coordination with the Turkish Emergency and Disaster Management (AFAD) - rushed to open their doors to the people to express their solidarity with the afflicted, as the city turned - as is the case in the rest of the Turkish cities - into an active hive devoid of any An activity with the exception of volunteering, donation and solidarity with the victims and those affected, especially those who suddenly became homeless.

Meanwhile, AFAD sent a series of directive messages and others asking for help, through the administrations of the residential complexes, in which it indicated that people can provide in-kind donations to those affected by the southern earthquake, especially those related to heating and food needs.

The Marash earthquake, which struck 10 Turkish states in the south of the country, the most important of which are Adiman, Gaziantep, Urfa and Hatay, led to the displacement of tens of thousands whose homes were destroyed or severely damaged, in light of cold weather and snow still falling in some affected areas.

And a message from the AFAD administration - seen by Al Jazeera Net - urged residents to donate a set of materials that it classified as "urgent needs", including heaters, blankets, tents, beds, furnishings, pillows and hygiene supplies in addition to canned food. Net 90 centers according to the lists circulated by the local population.

A center for collecting in-kind donations in the Turk Bazaar building in Istanbul (Al-Jazeera)

Volunteers are everywhere

As for Tasneem, a Syrian woman residing in the Bahcesehir neighborhood as well, she mentioned to Al-Jazeera Net that she woke up at 4 am, following a call from her sister residing in the city of Gaziantep, which was destroyed as a result of the earthquake, and she added that she began to provide assistance when she read a message from the municipality of Basaksehir urging To deliver special emergency supplies to the centers set up in the areas of Başak Bazar, Kayaşehir Bazar and Bazar Türk, in order to collect them and deliver them to the families of the victims.

The Syrian woman explained that she collected her blankets and winter clothes and, accompanied by her husband, drove them to the Bazar Turk Center near her home, to be surprised by the hundreds of volunteers she encountered in the center and they had divided the tasks between receiving donors and regulating the system, while other groups took over sorting tasks. Donations are packed in boxes and prepared, after which emergency management vehicles come to deliver them to those affected.

Long lines in Istanbul to donate blood for the earthquake victims in southern Turkey (Al-Jazeera)

Rescue volunteers

The scene of solidarity was not limited to that, as thousands of young people went to the city's airport, whose halls were filled with volunteers who donated to participate in search and rescue operations, after they received calls from government institutions that confirmed that they would be transported by plane to the affected cities in the south of the country.

And the state of Istanbul announced - in a press statement yesterday, Wednesday - that 122 aircraft, including 22 cargo planes and two ships, were sent from the state to the affected areas, in addition to sending 20,515 personnel and volunteers to the Emergency and Disaster Management (AFAD).

The city's governor, Ali Yerli Kaya, pointed out - in a tweet to him via his Twitter account - that 103 ambulances, medical rescue vehicles, 964 heavy vehicles, 22 search and rescue vehicles, 964 aid trucks and 4,765 tents were sent to the earthquake-stricken areas, especially to Hatay province.

It is noteworthy that the Turkish Red Crescent in Istanbul witnessed a large turnout to donate blood in order to contribute to saving the wounded and injured people who were pulled from the rubble, as donors lined up in long lines in front of the centers that were equipped after the earthquake.

Donors told Al-Jazeera Net about a waiting period of up to two hours to be able to donate blood, and many civil societies and institutions affiliated with Arab communities organized blood donation campaigns for the Turkish Red Crescent.