The World Health Organization on Friday said it has so far sent health supplies to some 400,000 people affected by the powerful earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria.
“In response to the devastating earthquakes impacting Türkiye and the Syrian Arab Republic, the World Health Organization delivered 72 metric tons of trauma and emergency surgery supplies, including treatments, to both countries to support ongoing response efforts,” read a WHO statement.
The WHO’s first two humanitarian flights carried 72 metric tons of life-saving supplies for 100,000 people in Türkiye and Syria, the statement said.
A third flight with 37 metric tons of emergency health supplies for 300,000 more people is scheduled to reach Syria on Sunday, it added.
“Survivors are facing freezing conditions, continuing aftershocks and very limited access to shelter, food, water, heat and medical care. We’re in a race against time to save lives,” said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) has also vowed to continue supporting ongoing relief operations “as survivors face desperate and mounting odds.”
“Survivors are not alone,” Jagan Chapagain, secretary general of the IFRC, said on Twitter.
More than 20,210 people have died and over 80,000 others were injured after two strong earthquakes jolted southern Türkiye on Monday, according to latest official figures.
The magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 earthquakes, centered in the Kahramanmaras province, have impacted some 13 million people across 10 Turkish provinces, including Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, and Sanliurfa.
In neighboring Syria, the death toll has climbed above 3,300, with more than 5,200 people wounded.
Source: Anadolu Agency