Türkiye: 2023 Earthquakes Situation Report No. 4, As of 23 February 2023

This report is produced by the OCHA/UNDAC mission in Türkiye in collaboration with humanitarian partners and covers the humanitarian situation and earthquake response in Türkiye. Separate updates are issued for Syria.

KEY FIGURES

9.1M
people affected
43K
people killed
108K
people injured
448K
people relocated
164K
buildings collapsed/damaged

SITUATION UPDATE

The devastating earthquakes in southern Türkiye on February 6, 2023 (magnitude 7.8 and 7.6) have killed a total of 43,556 people as of 23 February 2023 according to the Minister of Interior cited in media reports. More than 108,000 people have been injured due to the earthquakes, while over 448,018 people from affected areas have evacuated and relocated to safer areas, according to the latest official figures from Türkiye’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) on 18 and 21 February 2023 respectively. Aftershocks continue and more than 7,100 have occurred since February 6 with the largest of 6.4 magnitude in Hatay on February 20, 2023 resulting in six additional people who lost their lives. A total of 164,321 buildings with 520,000 independent units collapsed or were heavily damaged, according to the Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change on 23 February 2023. At least 9.1 million people have been directly impacted by this disaster in the 11 most affected provinces, which include the 10 provinces in which a 3-month state of emergency was declared on February 7, 2023 (Adiyaman, Gaziantep, Kilis, Hatay, Malatya, Diyarbakir, Adana, Osmaniye, Kahramanmaras and Sanliurfa) and Elazig.

HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE

The response to the earthquakes is being led by the Government of Türkiye, coordinated through AFAD and with the Turkish Red Crescent (TRC). The most urgent priorities since the earthquake have been swift and effective urban search and rescue (USAR) operations and the provision of lifesaving assistance to people who have been affected. As of 23 February 2023, AFAD reports that six (06) International Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) Teams remain active on the ground from four (4) countries across the affected areas.

According to AFAD as of 21 February, the Government of Türkiye has dispatched a total of 375 mobile kitchens, 86 catering vehicles and 361 service vehicles through the Turkish Red Crescent (TRC), AFAD, the Ministry of National Defense, the Gendarmerie, and local NGO partners. With more than 5,000 staff and volunteers, the TRC has been providing nutrition support on a daily basis. According to the TRC Situation Report No. 2 from 22 February, the TRC has provided 55 million hot meals to affected people. In addition, AFAD reports that 3,354,316 blankets were sent to the affected regions and 301,289 tents have been installed. Psychosocial support was provided to a total of 698,244 people, 497,093 in the earthquake zone and 201,151 outside.

The international humanitarian community is supporting the Government of Türkiye to aid the affected population. Key assistance provided by the United Nations and partners as of 23 February, includes:

Food and Kitchen Equipment: A total of 3.35 million food packages have reached affected people to date, delivered by WFP (3.34m) and UNHCR (11,950). In addition, 28,837 kitchen sets with cooking equipment have been distributed by UNHCR (19,500), IFRC (8,037), and IOM (1,300), including 3,800 electric cookers.

Shelter and Winter Items: A total of 94,304 sleeping pads/mattresses, 35,830 tarpaulins and 16,522 tents have been provided by UNHCR, IFRC, and IOM to meet the urgent needs of affected people for emergency shelter. This was complemented by the provision of 114,416 blankets as well as 15,253 heaters by IOM, UNHCR and UNICEF as protection against the cold weather. In addition, 11,503 children have received winter boots from UNICEF (9,503) and IOM (2,000) as well as 9,783 sets of winter clothes.

Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH): A total of 118,962 hygiene kits have been distributed by UNICEF (82,110), UNHCR (35,802) and IFRC (1,000) and IOM (50), including 21,500 bars of soap, 11,500 hand sanitizers (UNHCR) and 4,978 dignity kits by UNFPA and IFRC.

Health Services: A total of 31 Emergency Medical Teams (EMT), coordinated by WHO in close collaboration with the Ministry of Health, deployed for the response and as of 23 February 2023 18 teams remain active and continue to support hospitals and medical facilities that have been damaged, particularly focusing on trauma patients and catastrophic injuries.

To allow humanitarian organizations to further ramp up their ongoing assistance to support the Government- led response, the UN OCHA Central Emergency Response Fund approved an allocation of $10.2m on 16 February 2023 to support life-saving multi-sectoral assistance implemented by UNHCR, IOM, UNICEF, UNFPA, WFP, UNDP and NGO partners. The UN Flash Appeal that was launched on February 16 2023 for US$1b to assist 5.2 million people affected by the earthquake by April 2023 is 7.2% funded as of February 24, 2023.

For more information, please visit
https://response.reliefweb.int/turkiye