On the night of February 6, 2023, at 4:17 a.m. local time, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck Turkey and Syria and Turkey announced a three-month state of emergency in 10 provinces most affected by the earthquake in Turkey.
Aftershocks
The earthquake in Turkey was followed by 78 aftershocks and struck the region for the second time on the afternoon of February 6 at 13:24 pm with a magnitude of 7.5 in the province of Ekinozu. On February 20, a magnitude 6.4 earthquake and a second magnitude 5.8 earthquake also struck Turkey’s southern Hatay province, causing terror for those who stayed in an area devastated by the twin quakes two weeks ago.
Following the earthquake of 20 February, the Turkish Medical Association announced that there is no longer a public hospital in the Hatay region that can provide health services. On 27 February, another 5.6 magnitude earthquake struck Turkey’s southern province of Malatya. The major earthquake in Turkey was followed by a total of 9.990 aftershocks. The earthquakes led to the collapse of many buildings in the affected areas.
MDM RESPONSE
After the earthquake, MdM has 13 different containers installed to create safe spaces for the beneficiaries, staff and volunteers and to serve as operational facilities for the provision of health services. Already 3 large containers have been installed as primary health care centers, with designated areas for clinical practice. MdM follows a two-pronged approach: one of fixed services and one of mobile services.
The organisation’s permanent unit consists of individual teams consisting of a doctor, a midwife and a clinical psychologist and uses the containers installed near or inside the camps. In contrast, the mobile unit is divided into two separate teams, each consisting of a psychologist, a nurse, a case handler and a doctor. These mobile teams provide on-site assistance from tent to tent in areas where government and other aid agencies are unable to provide services. The priority is to prevent the risk of epidemics due to contamination of water resources in the affected areas.
Furthermore, the plan implemented by MdM-Turkey is to provide informative suggestions and kits with all the necessary products for the prevention of the mentioned diseases. Continuous aftershocks in the region pose a significant threat to individuals as they continue to experience the traumatic effects of the initial earthquake. MdM-Turkey is providing first aid, conducting medical examinations, distributing medicines, psychological first aid and expanding the installation of new safe spaces for vulnerable cases, women and children.