Turkey-Syria Earthquake: Death Toll Exceeds 15,000

Temperatures in the quake-stricken Turkish city of Gaziantep plunged to minus five degrees Celsius (23 degrees Fahrenheit) early on Thursday but thousands of families spent the night in cars and makeshift tents, too afraid to return to their homes – or banned from doing so.

Parents walked the streets of the city carrying children in blankets because it was warmer than sitting in a tent.

“When we sit down, it is painful, and I fear for anyone who is trapped under the rubble in this,” said Melek Halici, who had wrapped her two-year-old daughter in a blanket as they watched rescuers working late into the night. “Eventually, we will have to go to the tent but I don’t want to,” she told the AFP news agency. “I can’t bear the cold but nor can I think about going back to our apartment.”

Around the Halicis, smoke from dozens of fires filled the night air. Supermarkets and other businesses gave wooden pallets to families to burn. Some people found sanctuary with neighbours or relatives. Some left the region.

But many have nowhere to go.

Gyms, mosques, schools and some stores have opened up at night. But beds are still at a premium and thousands spend the nights in cars with engines running to provide heat.

“I have no choice,” said Suleyman Yanik, as he sat with one child playing with the steering wheel, while his wife and another child slept in the back seat. “The smell is horrible, but we cannot go home,” he told AFP.

Poor families who have been camping around Gaziantep’s sixth-century castle, badly damaged by the quake, said authorities have done nothing for them. The families have built makeshift homes with tarpaulin and wood thrown away by others.

“They could at least have given us some tents,” said Ahmet Huseyin.

“Our children are freezing,” added the 40-year-old father of five whose nearby house was virtually destroyed by the 7.8 magnitude tremor.

“We have had to burn the park benches and even some of the children’s clothes. There was nothing else,” he said.

For those seeking to donate to the earthquake response, charity groups and watchdogs advise taking some basic steps.

First, they recommend researching the charity to make sure they are reputable.

Second, they recommend determining if a charity will be the most effective in responding to a given crisis.

Third, they usually recommend giving cash, which offers chosen aid groups the most flexibility.

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