'War-time experience' helped volunteers quickly respond to Türkiye quakes

By Faruk Zorlu and Riyaz ul Khaliq

ADANA, Türkiye (AA) – The time spent aiding war-torn victims in Syria and other places helped volunteers of the Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH) to quickly respond to twin disasters that hit Türkiye early this month.

“The IHH’s rapid and effective action (in the aftermath of earthquakes) was possible… thanks to its 30 years of experience working in disasters and war where large masses and people are affected,” Faruk Erkilic, coordinating Istanbul-based prominent aid group’s foreign affairs specialist, said from Kilis.

Kilis, one of the 11 provinces struck by the earthquakes of Feb. 6, is home to IHH’s one of 14 major coordination centers from where they are shipping search, rescue and relief teams.

The group deployed around 5943 search & rescue, emergency aid personnel, most of whom are Turkish nations, during the emergency period in the aftermath of the devastation caused by the quakes. Many international students are also participating in packaging and shipping necessary items.

“Our volunteers were first responders to the situation… many of our volunteers died due to quakes, but many of them, whose families and relatives died or were injured, stood strong and began the search and rescue,” Erkilic said.

“There are many such stories and they are our real heroes,” he added.

The passion for engaging in volunteer work like this in the aftermath of disasters comes as the IHH routinely professionally trains them. The IHH is accredited by Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) for such training.

“Our volunteers are regularly trained in disaster management,” he added.

- ‘Crisis management desk set up 73 minutes after 1st quake’

According to Erkilic, the IHH set up 21 logistic centers and points to use around 550 vehicles soon after the earthquakes hit the country.

“The IHH set crisis management desk at 05:30 a.m. on Feb. 06, which coordinates all our operations from Kilis,” he said.

The first 7.7 magnitude quake hit Türkiye at 04:17 a.m. (0117GMT) on Feb. o6. The second 7.7 magnitude hit around nine hours later the same.
Seismologists have termed the occurrence of such two big earthquakes as something “unprecedented.”

IHH had already set up a big office in Kilis, Türkiye’s border province with Syria.

This office is used for logistics and coordination of all kinds of relief works that IHH conducts across the border in war-hot areas.

At this center, the IHH has, since day one, started preparing and packaging soup and bread.

“The emergency aid preparation such as food packaging began at 06:00 a.m. the same day quakes hit and by 09:00 a.m., the soup was being served to people in Kilis,” Erkilic said.

It runs two kitchens for hot meals and a huge bakery manufacturing unit from where it is shipped to other provinces.

While food, water and bread were being served, the IHH emergency teams had already hit roads from various places for deployment in the field.

“The first search and rescue by IHH began in Kilis at 06:17 a.m. (0317GMT),” the IHH office bearer said. “Our teams pulled out 3028 deceased or injured persons. More than 200 persons were found alive.”

- IHH receives support ranging from US to Australia

Besides being engaged in relief operations, IHH’s Kilis office is also busy receiving guests, both for physical as well as aid in kind for the quake-affected people from around the world.

“Foreign guests and visitors are coming from the US to Australia… both visitors and volunteers,” said Erkilic, who is in charge of the East Africa desk in the foreign affairs office at the IHH.

He said these individuals and groups have brought in “many aid and contributions.”

“We take them to ground zero and show them the situation besides providing them services,” Erkilic added.

“People are responding to Türkiye’s generosity it has shown all these years by helping people in need. Now, they are coming back with help,” he said.

At least 43,556 people were killed by two strong earthquakes that jolted southern Türkiye on Feb. 6. Thousands of others were injured.

AFAD said the quakes, centered in the Pazarcik and Elbistan districts of Kahramanmaras province, were followed by more than 7,000 aftershocks.

Several countries in the region, including Syria and Lebanon, also felt the tremors that struck in less than 10 hours.

Teams set up a total of 301,289 tents and 6,375 containers in the earthquake zone that were dispatched by ministries and relevant institutions as well as other countries and international organizations, AFAD said.

A total of 14,740 local and international search and rescue personnel are currently working in the field, it added.

Four mobile social service centers were assigned to disaster psychological support efforts in Kahramanmaras, Hatay, Osmaniye and Malatya. A total of 698,244 people received psychosocial support, with 497,093 in the earthquake zone and 201,151 outside the quake zone.

Separately, Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu announced at a press briefing that at least six people were killed and 562 others wounded, with 18 in critical condition after a fresh earthquake jolted Türkiye’s southernmost province of Hatay late Feb. 20.

*Halil Ibrahim Medet contributed to this story from Istanbul