MWA Members Responding to Massive Earthquake in Syria and Turkey

See these short takes from a few of MWA’s members on their current work in Syria and Turkey in response to the earthquake (click on the organization names to go to their sites directly):

CARE

In Turkey:

CARE Türkiye in close consultation with Turkish authorities CARE will be doing work primarily in Hatay and Urfa. We are working to deliver tents, mattresses, and blankets and other essential humanitarian aid. We have registration in those areas, enabling us to program there. We have already mapped out and purchased a lot of humanitarian commodities that are needed, including clothing, which are already in the pipeline.  

  • On 9 February, CARE started its response operations by delivering 16 tons of flour to Eyyubiye district in Urfa. 
  • Since 9 February, we have been carrying out distributions of drinking water, winter clothes, blankets, generators, and ready to eat meals to people affected by the earthquake. 

In Syria:

  • In the Northwest, our partners are continuing the distribution of hygiene kits, new arrival kits (mattresses, blankets, clothes), as well as providing water trucking and assisting in the removal of rubble. 
  • On 10 February, CARE delivered kitchen utensils, hygiene kits, mattresses and blankets, among other essential humanitarian aid to its partners in Northwest Syria (procured and delivered by UN partners).  Our partners have already started distributing humanitarian assistance.   
  • CARE Türkiye will continue cross-border operations to respond to the worst affected areas in Northwest Syria, where approximately 60% of the population are internally displaced persons.
  • Our partners in Northwest Syria are busy with rubble removal and search and rescue efforts, which are coming to an end now, and were busy with setting up hangars and family tents to host families that have been impacted by the earthquake in different locations. All this despite being affected themselves. Their work is heroic. 
  • Keep in mind that partners on the ground have also lost staff, infrastructure, and assets, they are struggling to care for their own while also caring for others.
  • We are preparing for potential influxes of internally displaced persons across northern Syria to areas where we or our partners operate. 
  • Prepositioning to provide emergency response such as clean water, hygiene kits, sanitation solutions, food, and clothes to those displaced by the earthquake, assessing damage to water supply infrastructure caused by the earthquake to determine our response. 

HELVETAS

Helvetas, the Swiss development cooperation and humanitarian aid organization, is helping earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria by mobilizing resources for our Alliance2015 partners working on the ground. Four NGOs from Alliance2015, an alliance of seven European NGOs already working in Turkey and northwestern Syria, immediately initiated humanitarian aid activities. People in Need is distributing tarpaulins and will also provide cash so that those affected can buy what they most urgently need. ACTED is focused on distributing essential goods in northwestern Syria and will soon initiate cash assistance and an upscaling of existing displacement camps. Concern Worldwide, which has partners in Gaziantep and Sanliurfa, is distributing food, blankets, heaters, and water. Welthungerhilfe, which has a presence throughout the region, will focus on delivering humanitarian aid – emergency kits, food and blankets – in Syria.

CAWST

CAWST has assembled suggested resources to help WASH implementers and their teams respond to immediate water and hygiene needs. These tools, developed in collaboration with humanitarian organizations for crisis response, will help professionals in the field to refresh or learn new crucial information on water, sanitation, and hygiene interventions in emergencies. 

RESOURCE RECOMMENDATIONS:

Downloadable tools and very short e-learning modules for:

Drinking water treatment 

Treat, disinfect and safely handle drinking water under field conditions. Topics include chlorination, chlorine dose calculators (batch and shock), storage and transport.

Drinking water quality testing

Test the quality of drinking water under field conditions. Topics include testing methods, water sample collection, chlorine levels and interpreting results.

Wash’Em

Free resources to help you design and deliver handwashing programs in emergencies. The whole Wash’Em process can be done in less than a week. The rapid assessment tools and software are easy enough for everyone to use and quick enough to try out, even in the acute phase of an emergency.

You can also find resources for addressing sanitation and behaviour change in emergencies.

CAWST also offers a collection of emergency resources in PDF format for use where Internet access is limited, available by request.

FOOD FOR THE HUNGRY

Food for the Hungry is responding to the earthquake in Northern Syria. We have been working with a local partner and several Syrian churches in the region including food distribution, education programs, hygiene promotion, and non-food item distribution since the outbreak of violence over ten years ago. Our presence and familiarity on the ground have enabled us to quickly pivot to response for earthquake victims. The first phase, about one month long will entail provision of ready to eat meals, blankets, and hygiene kits for 4,200 families at recovery centers in Aleppo, Hama, Lattakia, and Tartous governorates. The second phase is anticipated to last 12 months or longer and will include continued food distribution, topping off of hygiene kit contents, and rebuilding shelters. The current program, as designed, is estimated to cost about $3 million.

SAVE THE CHILDREN

Save the Children is responding through our existing local partners with urgent lifesaving assistance in both Türkiye and Syria. Damaged roads, airports, and communication lines, and continued aftershocks and poor weather conditions are complicating relief efforts, but we’re working with our partners to move quickly to provide urgent support to children and their families as soon as possible.

In North West Syria, Save the Children is working to assess the scale of the damage and to provide support to children.

In Türkiye, Save the Children is working to assess needs and has established a response team to support the national emergency response across the region, in close coordination with the government and key stakeholders.

Save the Children’s teams on the ground are planning to support affected communities with winterization and emergency kits, including blankets and winter clothing. 

Over the coming days and weeks, we will be:

  • Providing hot meals for people in temporary shelters across Hatay, Türkiye.
  • With support from our partners, delivering ready-to-eat meals for families in Northwest Syria.
  • Distribute temporary shelter tents and essential emergency relief items, including blankets, warm clothing, heaters, baby food and diapers to keep children and their families warm and safe in the freezing conditions.
  • Provide cash to families who have lost their homes and belongings so they can buy food, medicine and other essentials.
  • Ensure families can keep clean, healthy and protected from illness and diseases by providing access to clean water, sanitation and hygiene items.
  • Deploy our Emergency Health Unit, a team of specialist health workers, to assess the health needs of those affected and help plan a scale-up of essential health services
  • Help reunite unaccompanied children with their families or support safe alternative care arrangements if needed.
  • Provide psychological support to children and their caregivers to help them overcome the traumatic experience they’ve been through.

WATER MISSION

Water Mission is actively responding to the disaster caused by the February 6th earthquakes in Turkey. More information is provided below, and updates can be found on our website
With more than 20 years of experience responding to natural disasters and humanitarian crises, Water Mission has an extensive background in providing immediate and long-term safe water solutions. Water Mission’s Disaster Assistance Response Team, which includes engineers and logisticians, is currently in Turkey conducting a rapid WASH assessment.

Our team is assessing water quality and needs and identifying local partners, using the proper approval channels of Turkey’s Ministry of Interior Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency. Assessments include testing water sources and determining appropriate solutions that meet the needs, such as infrastructure repairs, water treatment, and trucking water to distribution points. Back at Water Mission headquarters in N. Charleston, SC, our teams are shipping lifesaving equipment and supplies, which will arrive in the region later this week.

Shipments include:
• Five emergency safe water treatment systems, generators, pumps, water bladders, and operational supplies to get safe water flowing quickly.
• Water quality testing kits so our experts can properly treat water and ensure it is safe to consume.
• More than 65,000 P&G water purification supplies.
• Tapstand kits to build easily accessible water distribution points.
• More than 3,000 jerry cans so displaced families can transport safe water.
• More than 1,300 hygiene kits to help keep families healthy amid crowded conditions.

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