TURKEY – Turkey has been shattered by this recent disaster. The World Bank estimates that these earthquakes caused $34 billion in damage to the country. It could cost twice as much to rebuild. But these piles of rubble tell much more of a story, one far more meaningful than a dollar sign.
Operation Blessing is Showing God’s Love to Earthquake Victims
One resident said, “It was like the end of the world. We thought that we would die. It was difficult!”
For years to come, people will likely be sharing painful memories of “the day the earth shook.”
One resident who shared her experience with us is a former schoolteacher, born and raised in Hatay, a region surrounded by beautiful mountains and famous for its cuisine and archeology. The recent earthquakes, however, erased much of life in the area.
She said, “There is no school to work at. Most of my students are dead now. The rest have relocated.”
Widespread damage has left much of the country under a state of emergency. Many survivors suffer from post-traumatic stress.
Director of International Disaster Relief, Diego Traverso said, “The trauma is something that is tangible. We see it through the eyes of the kids right now—the families that lost their beloved ones.”
Diego and the Operation Blessing team have been on the ground since the first quake struck. The base of operations in Hatay has been a refuge for people who have nothing.
He said, “People have seen this love, the tangible love through a hot meal, through water, through medicine, or just listening to them, just sitting with them and listening to them over and over.” Initiatives like our food distributions and efforts to improve clean water access are making a huge difference for earthquake victims. They are seeing God’s love through friends like you!
Relief Team is Improving Clean Water Access for Earthquake Victims
We’ve been distributing water bottles due to the terrible damage earthquakes did to the local infrastructure, leaving residents with highly contaminated water access. Now, our water engineer has successfully developed a way to purify up to 300 gallons of water per day from the local well in Hatay using reverse osmosis, and we are preparing to ramp up our clean water efforts.
Diego said, “We can be sure that the water that we’re filtering is 100% clean, cleaner than the ones that sell in the stores.”
Stay tuned for more information about Operation Blessing’s Turkey response. To donate to disaster relief efforts, visit: https://www.ob.org/disasterrelief/
