16 February 2023
A book of condolence was opened at the Embassy of Turkey in Pretoria in honour of the victims of the devastating February 6th Earthquake. Representatives of the South African government, the Diplomatic Corps, Civil Society, Business, Academia and South African community visited the Embassy of Turkey in Pretoria to share their sorrow, and signed the
Condolence Book.
The Diplomatic Informer Magazine, CEO and Publisher, Ms. Susan Novela and the Director of Circle Way Training, Ms. Nickoulah Chesa, also visited the Embassy of the Republic of Turkey to expressed their heartfelt condolences.
On Monday, February 6, at 04:17 local time, a catastrophic 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck Türkiye and Syria at a depth of about 17.9 kilometres,
with a second enormous quake measuring 7.5 magnitude-hitting hours later. The initial earthquake was followed by more than 100 aftershocks,
some as large as 6.5 magnitudes and felt in countries as far away as Palestine, Greece, and Egypt, indicating the enormity of this disaster.
According to the most recent reports, over 35 000 people have died, with at least 80 000 seriously injured and many more trapped beneath collapsed buildings. The number of fatalities is sharply rising. . The quake caused widespread destruction across cities in
southern Türkiye, and northern Syria, a country already devastated by nearly 12 years of conflict.
At least 26 million people have been affected by this natural disaster. The earthquakes are the worst to hit
the Turkish region in 19 years and in Syria, the worst in over acentury.
The scale of this tragedy cannot yet be determined as the situation on the ground continues to evolve, what we do know is that it is a raceagainst time to save lives. Please donate generously to our Türkiye
Syria Earthquake Appeal now.
The earthquake has destroyed infrastructure
such as homes, buildings, schools, hospitals, roads, airports and essential services, making it difficult for those affected to access fundamental necessities such as food, water, shelter and medical care.
More than 6,000 buildings have been demolished since the earthquake struck, displacing cities of people, exacerbated by freezing winter
temperatures.
The aftershocks, freezing temperatures, and damaged roads impede efforts to reach and rescue those affected by Monday’s earthquake in southern
Turkey and northern Syria.
Health facilities are understaffed and under-resourced, with shortages of essential medical supplies reported
and limited staff due to being directly impacted. The situation is dire, and there is an urgent need for support to assist those affected by the disaster.
The Embassy, has been working around the clock together with the Turkish Embassies in Pretoria and Cape Town and various organisations including
Gift of the Givers and the Turkish Disaster Agency to ensure manpower, medical supplies and other essentials for the search and rescue.
Ambassador Kandas said South Africa was one of the first countries to respond to Turkey’s plea for help. “We are so happy that amongst the first countries that responded was South Africa. Last we recorded; it
was 70 countries that responded. She said there were currently six SA organisations on the ground.
“What we need now is medical supplies, medical devices, medicine, the list of the urgently needed material are on our social media accounts.
“As the ambassador of Turkey, I would like to say we are truly grateful for all the help.
To support relief efforts, make contact with the Turkish Consulate on 078 821 1991 or reach them on their Facebook and Twitter account
@Turkish EMBPTA, for the Embassy in Pretoria or @Cape Turkish for the Consulate.
The Diplomatic Informer Magazine wishes to extend our heartfelt condolences to the Government and People of Turkey following the devastating earthquake.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the Government and the people of Turkey, the families of the victims, the injured and all those affected by this natural calamity and we hope for an early restoration of normalcy