In addition to the catastrophe caused by the earthquake in Turkey and Syria, which killed more than 20,000 people, there is a parallel crisis related to the displaced, whether in the affected Turkish or Syrian regions, where the number of those affected by the earthquake is estimated to be about 26 million people who live in difficult conditions without shelter, water or electricity, while The World Health Organization expresses its fear that a number of these people may lose their lives.
Despite the continuation of rescue work in southern Turkey and northern Syria, the chances of finding survivors are gradually diminishing, while the survivors are sitting on the rubble waiting for the death toll to be completed and the bodies to be found and buried.
In the Turkish regions, the number of people affected by the earthquake exceeds 15 million, according to Turkish officials, while the United Nations says that about 11 million people were affected by the disaster in the northwestern regions of Syria (Hama, Latakia, Idlib, Tartous and Aleppo).
Many houses in the earthquake-stricken area were completely destroyed, cracked, unsuitable for habitation, or prohibited from use until they are finally examined and their fate is decided and whether or not the residents can be accommodated.
The Turkish authorities announced the collapse of more than 7,000 buildings in the ten states affected by the earthquake, which had a magnitude of 7.8 on the Richter scale, and the aftershocks that followed it, and an unknown number of houses collapsed in northern Syria.
The crisis is compounded by the refugees, especially the Syrians. Of the 15 million affected people in the Turkish regions, there are more than 1.7 million Syrian refugees.
The Turkish government's options seem limited in dealing with the crisis, as it says it has provided more than 50,000 hotel rooms for shelter, but the capacity of these rooms will not exceed more than a quarter of a million people, leaving 14,750,000 homeless, and therefore tents and metal houses must be provided. prepared for them, so as not to be left to their inevitable fate in light of the severe cold weather and the lack of aid.
The World Health Organization points to a "parallel crisis", as some deadly diseases began to appear among those displaced by the earthquake, such as cholera and respiratory diseases, in addition to deep psychological trauma with the loss of shelter, water, fuel and electricity, and the organization has expressed its fear that many people will be lost. survivors their lives.
With the death toll from the earthquake exceeding 20,000 people, the major crisis awaits millions of living victims, for whom urgent assistance must be provided to adapt to post-disaster conditions, so that they do not face an unwelcome fate.