Earthquake in Turkey: Call for International Aid
Turkish Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu: There are 6 earthquakes over 6, we will go to the region with our minister friends. All our teams are on the alert. We've set up a fourth level alert. This is an alarm that includes international aid.
Regarding the 7.4-magnitude earthquake that occurred in the Pazarcık district of Kahramanmaraş, Minister of Interior Süleyman Soylu said, “There have been 5 aftershocks over 6 so far. There are 6 earthquakes above 6, the largest is 6.6.” gave the information.
Soylu made statements at the AFAD Coordination Center regarding the 7.4 magnitude earthquake that took place in the Pazarcık district of Kahramanmaraş.
Stating that Gaziantep, Osmaniye, Malatya, Adıyaman, Adana, Diyarbakır, Kilis and Şanlıurfa were affected by the earthquake, Soylu said, “There are reports from many places. At the moment, our search and rescue teams have been dispatched to the regions. Our cargo planes are being prepared, they have been dispatched to the regions. Our first job is search and rescue. To do their work. All our teams are on the alert. We have put forward a fourth level alarm. The fourth level is an alarm that includes international aid. In this respect, this is our latest situation at the moment.” he said.
Stating that the citizens will be informed from the press center established within AFAD at certain times, Soylu said, “We all shared it with our minister friends. We will all pass, together with all our friends, to all the provinces and provinces affected by the earthquake.” said.
Asked by journalists about how many earthquakes there were, Soylu said, “There have been 5 aftershocks above 6 so far. There are 6 earthquakes above 6, the largest is 6.6. One of them happened in Nurdağı.” used the phrases.
When asked about information on loss of life and destruction, Soylu said, “At the moment, we cannot say anything about the information about destruction and loss of life. However, we will continue to make statements on these issues in a regular way.” made its assessment.
Stating that Hatay, Gaziantep, Osmaniye, Malatya, Adıyaman, Adana, Diyarbakır, Kilis and Şanlıurfa were affected by the earthquake, Soylu said, “Currently, all our governors, gendarmerie and police, TSK, AFAD and Kızılay teams are being dispatched to the relevant regions at the beginning of their duties. We are on the road with our friends. I will go to Kahramanmaraş. Our Minister of Agriculture and Forestry will go to Hatay. Murat Kurum will go to Gaziantep, the Minister of Youth and Sports will go to Osmaniye. To Adıyaman, the Minister of Transport is passing through Istanbul right now. To Malatya. The Minister of Culture and Tourism will go. Our Minister of Health is going here.” used the phrases.
Stating that citizens will be informed at certain times from the press center established within AFAD, Soylu continued as follows:
“There are serious traffic jams in some places. First of all, it is important that our citizens do not move their vehicles in places where they are in order to cause ambulance and search and rescue teams. We have only one request from our citizens all over Turkey regarding mobile phones, not to use their mobile phones outside the earthquake zone and not to occupy the lines. Disinformation, especially in social media, is both misleading and occupied at this hour, and it brings our nation to a point that upsets our nation.
Stating that the cargo planes are ready for shipment, Soylu said:
“Unfortunately, there are citizens who lost their lives. As we get information, the Directorate of Communications will inform our citizens and make guiding announcements throughout the day from the AFAD center. There were 22 aftershocks, the largest of which was 6.6. Therefore, it is not possible to enter the damaged buildings and stay outside as much as possible in the areas I have mentioned at the moment. is fundamental.”