Current situation might lead to waterborne infections, which would be particularly devastating to children
Parts of Türkiye that are worst affected by last week’s devastating earthquakes urgently need humanitarian aid to prevent a secondary public health emergency, said Save the Children, an international non-profit.
Thousands of people here lack access to clean drinking water and sanitary amenities like running water and toilets. The current situation might lead to waterborne infections, which would be particularly devastating to children, the non-profit said in its press note released on February 13, 2023.
Also read: Turkey-Syria earthquake explained
A massive earthquake of magnitude 7.8 occurred in the southeast of Turkey, near the border with Syria, on February 6, 2023.
Some 25 aftershocks followed the earthquake, with six of them measuring magnitude five or above, according to the United States Geological Survey. Some 35,331 deaths have been officially recorded, with 31,643 occurring in Turkey and at least 3,688 in Syria, according to officials and medical personnel.
The survivors struggle with a scarcity of water and inadequate hygiene. An outbreak of scabies, a skin condition known to spread in crowded quarters, is afflicting adults in Adiyaman, Turkey, while children are experiencing diarrhoea, reported local media.
“I spoke to parents in the areas around Antakya who are sleeping in cars and community centres, they told me that their children are vomiting, so there’s a real concern that some children are already falling ill,” said Randa Ghazy, regional media manager at Save the Children International.
Also read: Turkey-Syria earthquake: a seismologist explains what just happened
Ghazy is currently at Antakya, Hatay, one of the worst affected areas in Türkiye. The issue is compounded by the lack of health services, as many hospitals have been destroyed and those still standing are overwhelmed with thousands of injured people.
“I’m heartbroken to see the conditions survivors are facing freezing weather and extremely limited access to shelter, food, water, heat and medical care,” World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus had tweeted.
Hospitals are also running short on medical supplies and fuel to operate. They won’t be able to cope with a waterborne disease outbreak and children will be in the greatest danger,” said Ghazy.
It’s psychologically difficult for survivors to live in these conditions. Women and girls have to manage their periods without privacy, clean water and sanitary products, Ghazy added.
Marielle Snel, senior global humanitarian water sanitation and hygiene advisor for Save the Children, said:
People in earthquake-affected areas urgently need safe drinking water and latrines. It’s challenging as water pipes are broken. Once the latrines are in place, waste needs to be safely disposed of to avoid the risk of waterborne and vector-borne diseases.
Some 574 children evacuated from wrecked buildings in Turkey were found without any surviving parents, said Turkey’s Vice President Fuat Oktay.
Hatice Goz, a volunteer psychologist in Turkey’s Hatay province, told AFP that she has been fielding a barrage of calls from frantic parents looking for missing children.
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