After the severe earthquake in southern Turkey last night, Turkish Dutch are trying to contact their relatives in the earthquake-affected area. “I feel powerless.”
Wedding columnist Emine Uğur was born in the city of Gaziantep, a few tens of kilometers from the epicenter. There are many family members living there. She has been trying to reach her relatives since 3 in the morning, she. “Fortunately most of them are in good shape. We haven’t heard from a cousin yet. He lives in a collapsed building. I fear the worst.”
A 7.8-magnitude tremor in the morning shook residents in a large area around the Turkey-Syria border. At around 11:15 am Dutch time, more than 1,300 deaths were reported in Turkey and Syria. This is expected to continue increasing.
Given the time of the earthquake, many people woke up from their slumber. “All the houses collapsed,” said Uğur. “People fled without their clothes and phones.”
The damage in the affected area is huge:
In Gaziantep province, the temperature is around freezing and it snowed last weekend. Weather conditions make the search for survivors difficult. For those who cannot return home, a warm shelter should be found.
“I talked to a cousin,” Uğur says. “He was taken to a still intact school building, and a cousin said the survivors were sent to government buildings. It is doubtful whether the people trapped under the rubble due to the cold will be rescued in time.”
Deniz Dönmez, a 22-year-old student from Enschede, is also very worried about her relatives. Most of them live in the city of Hatay, close to the epicenter. “I spoke to an aunt. He said most of them were fine but very difficult to contact. The internet and telephone were largely unsuccessful. I’m worried because I haven’t heard from everyone.”
Dönmez, who is currently in Sweden for training, woke up this morning with the news of the earthquake. “I feel powerless. My grandfather is in the hospital in Samandag on the beach. I have no idea how. My family is also trying to reach family from the Netherlands. I’d rather be with them now.”
chaos
The images of the destroyed buildings impressed the student. “I come every year, so I see these places in front of me. It’s a mess. If you haven’t talked to most of the family yet, there’s no use looking at these pictures.”
There are many slums in the affected area of Turkey and a large number of Syrian refugees are taken in. According to Turkey correspondent Mitra Nazar, it has been criticized for years that cities are not earthquake resistant. “We’ll be hearing a lot more about it in the near future.”
Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra announced that he will send rescue workers from the Urban Search and Rescue Team (USAR) to Turkey. These include search and rescue workers, nurses, doctors, and sniffer dog handlers.
A Red Cross crisis center was established in Ankara, the capital of Turkey. The aid organization is coordinated from there. Nicole van Batenburg of the Dutch Red Cross said on NPO Radio 1 this morning that trucks full of relief supplies and ambulances were dispatched to the disaster area. “A disaster of incredible proportions. The Red Cross is providing as much support as it can and will also appeal to its colleagues abroad.”
Donation
Mustafa Ayrancı, President of the Turkish Workers’ Union (HTİB) in the Netherlands, stated that a campaign was started among the Dutch Turks to raise money for earthquake victims. “We are working with other organizations to see what we can do in the short term. We want to raise money so that we can buy the things needed there.”
Source: NOS
Karen Clayton is a seasoned journalist and author at The Nation Update, with a focus on world news and current events. She has a background in international relations, which gives her a deep understanding of the political, economic and social factors that shape the global landscape. She writes about a wide range of topics, including conflicts, political upheavals, and economic trends, as well as humanitarian crisis and human rights issues.
