ACTIVITY REPORT-I ON VAN ERCIS EARTHQUAKE 23RD TO 27TH OCTOBER 2011 1
THE DEATH TOLL RISES TO 550 PEOPLE AFTER THE DEVASTATING EARTHQUAKE After the devastation earthquake of magnitude 7.2 on 23 rd October 2011, the chance of finding anyone else alive is diminishing and hopes have been faded for those still missing under the debris of collapsed buildings in Van city and Ercis District. For the most part, the rescue teams find death bodies. According to the Disaster and Emergency Management, the number of the death that has risen is 550 out of which 63 were teachers; wounded is 2,300 and pulled out from the collapsed buildings is 185 as of 21:30 local time on Thursday, 27 th of October 2011. Moreover, hundreds of others are still believed to be buried under rubbles. In and around Van city and Ercis District, total 4,696 buildings have been damaged; 861 buildings totally collapsed; 2,210 buildings found damaged and uninhabitable and 1,615 buildings damaged but inhabitable. Most of the buildings in the city center were multi-storey buildings. Loss assessments are going on at the earthquake zone. RESPONSE OF AT EARTHQAKE ZONE: IHH-Humanitarian Relief Foundation has been actively involved in Rescue and Relief activities at the earthquake areas since 7.2-magnitude earthquake on Sunday 23rd of October. The response of IHH at a glance is as following; IHH Coordination Office: Immediately after the earthquake, IHH mobilized its Search, Rescue and Emergency Relief Teams which were closed to the quake region. IHH teams which speedily arrived at Erciş district gave support to the coordination efforts at the crisis center in order to ensure a speedy and effective coordination of search and rescue efforts. IHH teams firstly determined the damage caused by the quake in the streets of Erciş. Then, official and civilian search and rescue teams, either Turkish or foreign, were sent to work on wreckages of demolished buildings in accordance with their equipments, capacity and the condition of the wreckage. 2
In the meantime, IHH set up a desk where IHH volunteers received notices about the wreckages and missing people and prepared a list of them. Medics who came to the area were sent to the health centers. Getting support from the police and soldiers in Erciş, IHH teams helped establishment of coordination with the Crisis Center to ensure that search and rescue efforts are carried out speedily and work machines reach the wreckages safely. Organizing Volunteers across the country: IHH coordinated with its teams from 24 cities of Turkey; Istanbul, Alanya, Ankara, Antalya, Erzurum, İzmir, Kayseri, Konya, K.Maraş, Bingöl, Adıyaman, Sakarya, Muş, Ağrı, Bursa, Diyarbakir, Tatvan, Usak, Kutahya, Bitlis, Adana, Malatya, Bolu and Elazig that were mobilized and rushed to the region. Total number of 304 people has been volunteering from the first day at the affected areas. Search and Rescue: IHH successfully organized its Licensed Emergency Rescue Teams from different cities of Turkey comprising of 37 people that arrived at the affected area 6 hours after the earthquake along with all necessary equipment, material and two caterpillar tracks. Despite widespread destruction and cold temperatures, teams scoured the ruins for survivors around the clock in Ercis District that is the most affected area since the first day and successfully pulled 9 people from the debris of different collapsed buildings, out of which 3 people were rescued nearly three days after the earthquake. In addition to the rescue efforts, the equipments were lent to other rescue teams that lacked with. The teams are still engaged in searching the collapsed buildings in hope of reaching alive people despite of hopes faded around and have said to continue until no survivors are left under the debris. Seting up stores: 3 buildings have been hired and one big tent of 1,000 square meters has been put up as stores where relief items sent from different cities of Turkey are received, sorted and dispatched to the affected areas for distributions. 3
Emergency Relief: Though, many relief items have been, by the date, distributed to the people by authorities, organizations and charitable people, however, these were far from sufficient as not only the people whose houses have been demolished are out of their houses, but majority of the people at the affected area pass their day and night on the streets next to their houses. The shortage of tents, coupled with the approaching winter has worsened the situation. IHH s Emergency Relief Team with 267 members has been trying to provide the basic necessities of the affected people mainly in Ercis District that is the most devastated area in Van city. The people from Adana, Adıyaman, Afyonkarahisar, Ağrı, Alanya, Ankara, Antalya, Artvin, Aydın, Batman, Balikesir, Bingöl, Bitlis, Bolu, Bursa, Cankiri, Corum, Denizli, Diyarbakir, Düzce, Elazig, Erzincan, Erzurum, Eskişehir, Gaziantep, Giresun, Gümüşhane, Hatay, Isparta, İstanbul, İzmir, K.Maraş, Karaman, Kastamonu, Kayseri, Kirklareli, Kilis, Kocaeli, Konya, Kutahya, Malatya, Mardin, Muş, Niğde, Ordu, Osmaniye, Sakarya, Samsun, Sivas, Siirt, Şanlıurfa, Tatvan, Trabzon, Tokat, Usak and Zonguldak cities of Turkey were mobilized by IHH for donating relief items that have been arriving at affected areas in parts, being sorted at the stores and distributed according to the needs of the people. 4
Following is the detail of the relief items that have so far been distributed among the affected people in Van city and Ercis District between Sunday 23 rd to Wednesday 26 th of October 2011. DETAIL OF THE DISTRIBUTED RELIEF ITEMS ITEM QUANTITY SHELTER AND PROTECTION Tents 2,500 Blankets 20,670 pieces Heaters 100 units FOOD ITEMS Different food items 283 tons Bread 125,000 loafs CLOTHES AND SHOES Winter clothes for ladies, gents and children 79,425 pieces Shoes for ladies, gents and children 2,423 pairs WATER AND HYGIENE ITEMS Water 200 tons Baby diapers 7,500 packets Baby food 2,200 packets Mobile kitchen: The mobile kitchen of IHH that is able to supply cooked food to ten thousand people per day has started offering cooked food to the affected people in Ercis District of Van. The mobile kitchen is serving to 10,000 people with two meals a day comprising of two types of cooked food and bread. It does not serve only the affected people, but also rescue teams of different organizations and individuals who have been tireless working to rescue the people for last 5 days. Orphans Care: IHH, sponsoring 21,000 orphans in 31 countries across the world and in Turkey for last many years, has as well started assessments on the children who were orphaned before the earthquake and children who have been orphaned by single parent or both, by the earthquake in Van city, Ercis district and sorrounding villages. IHH is now assisting them by providing their urgent needs; shelter, food, clothes and will regularly sponsor the identified orphan children under its Family Sponsorship System. 5
URGENT NEEDS AT THE EARTHQUAKE ZONE: Basic items needed at the earthquake zone are following as identified by the teams of IHH on the ground; A. Shelter and protection: Winterized tents Blankets Sleeping bags Heaters B. Food Items: High energy biscuits Baby food Canned food Milk Fruit juice C. Clothing: Winter clothes and shoes Undergarments D. Water and Hygiene: Drinking water Baby diapers Ladies hygiene items Soap Activities of IHH-Humanitarian Relif Foundation are as well available in the following link: https://rapidshare.com/files/3274424672/van_dsf.mpeg IHH-Humanitarian Relief Foundation Büyük Karaman Cad. Taylasan Sok. No:3 Post Code. 34230 Fatih / Istanbul-Turkey Phone: +90 212 631 21 21 Fax: +90 212 621 70 51 Website: www.ihh.org.tr E-mail: ihh@ihh.org.tr 6