Three weeks have passed since the major earthquake that occurred in southern Turkey on February 6th, and more than 50,000 people have died in Turkey and Syria so far.
Many local people are still forced to live in tents, etc., and criticism of the government's response is increasing as the evacuation life is prolonged.
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Criticism of the government's initial response and earthquake resistance measures is increasing
The 7.8-magnitude earthquake that struck southern Turkey on February 6 and the subsequent quake have killed more than 50,000 people, including 44,374 in Turkey and 5,914 in neighboring Syria.
On the 27th, three weeks after the earthquake, a 5.2-magnitude earthquake struck the southeastern province of Malatya. According to Turkish disaster prevention authorities, one person was killed, 110 injured, and 29 buildings damaged. It means the building has collapsed.
More than 1.91 million people are still forced to live in tents.
As evacuation life is prolonged, there are increasing voices criticizing the initial response of the Turkish government and the response to earthquake resistance of buildings.
In Istanbul, the largest city, on the 26th, protesters demanding the resignation of the government and security officials clashed in the streets. There was also an act in which they sang in chorus, "Let's resign."
Turkish President Erdogan visited Adiyaman Province, one of the affected areas, on the 27th and said, "We were not able to respond as expected due to the worsening weather and damaged infrastructure. I would like to apologize for that." We apologize for the delayed initial response in some areas.
On top of that, he indicated that he would do his best to work toward reconstruction, but it is unclear whether the growing criticism can be suppressed.
Turkey's damage amount is over 4.65 trillion yen, estimated by the World Bank
On the 27th, the World Bank announced an estimate that the physical damage to Turkey from the massive earthquake that occurred in southern Turkey amounted to 34.2 billion dollars, or more than 4.65 trillion yen in Japanese yen.
This corresponds to Turkey's year-end GDP = 4% of gross domestic product.
It is estimated that 1.25 million people were temporarily homeless, with the most damage to homes at $18 billion, approximately 2.45 trillion yen.
In addition, the related losses such as disruption of economic activities, impact on agriculture and employment are also large, and the World Bank says that the cost of recovery and reconstruction may be more than double the amount of damage.
Syria's damage estimate will be released on the 28th.
Local Mayor Appreciates Japan Disaster Relief Medical Team
In response to this earthquake, the local mayor visited the base of the medical team of the Japan Disaster Relief Team dispatched from Japan to Gaziantep in southern Turkey, and thanked Japan for its support.
A medical team of the Japan Disaster Relief Team entered Gaziantep, where the hospital was destroyed by the earthquake and became unusable on the 14th of this month. I have treated more than 850 people.
On the 27th, three weeks after the earthquake, the local mayor Fatma Shahin visited the base of the medical team and toured the facilities, including operating rooms and benches, while listening to an explanation from Head Takeshi Ishihara.
Then, to Ambassador Kazuhiro Suzuki of the Japanese Embassy in Turkey, who accompanied the inspection, he said, "The Japanese medical team is making tremendous efforts here. I have never seen a hospital with such high performance. We will rebuild the city.It will be an event that will go down in the history of friendship between our two countries.Thank you to the people of Japan."
In response, Ambassador Suzuki said, "Japan and Turkey are destined to live on an earthquake zone, and we must live with the earthquake. I would like to cooperate from the perspective of how to create a more resilient nation and society," he promised further support.