Update on Türkiye-Syria Earthquake Deployment: Three Teams of RE:ACT International Responders Deployed
Posted by Alice Chick 10th February 2023 News
Estimated Reading Time: 1 min
Since Wednesday 8th February, RE:ACT International Operations Manager Paul Taylor and volunteer International Responder Jan Campbell-Wood have been undertaking a recce of the situation in Türkiye. Through their assessments, the decision has been made to deploy further teams to support the humanitarian efforts, with 15 Responders flying out.
Within 48 hours of the earthquake, Paul and Jan landed in Türkiye and made their way across the country to Gaziantep.
After a long 24 hours of travelling due to delays caused by the freezing weather and debris, our two-person recce team find themselves amongst the scenes of devastation. Around them, are hundreds of collapsed buildings as well as dedicated search and rescue teams who have travelled from around the world to assist with the ongoing rescue efforts.
From an initial recce, it is clear to Paul and Jan that one of the most pressing needs is for shelter. Speaking on the scenes he is witnessing, Paul said:
“At the moment the focus quite rightly is still on search and rescue and fortunately people are still being found alive and hopefully this continues to be the case. After this, we will move into the emergency relief phase, supporting those who have been rescued and lost their homes who are now in need of shelter, food and water. This is where RE:ACT can provide support and where our main focus will be initially.”
As part of their assessment, Jan and Paul visited the area of Islahiye which has been devastated by the earthquake. Following this recce, the decision was taken to launch a full deployment with three Response Teams from RE:ACT flying out to Turkiye to join Paul and Jan. Their initial focus will be supporting the humanitarian effort in Islahiye. Meanwhile, Paul and Jan are continuing their recce of the wider affected areas to ascertain what other support RE:ACT can provide.
RE:ACT Response Teams are highly trained and prepared to be fully self-sufficient so as not to put any further strain on the affected area.