Worldwide call for disaster aid effort

FIVE days on and rescuers are still searching the rubble from Monday’s devastating earthquake in Turkey and Syria.

More than 22,000 are now known to have died, but the true scale of the death toll is still unclear. Hopes, however, of finding any more survivors are fading.

The need for a concerted relief and rebuilding effort is clear, but although help has come, it did not arrive soon enough.

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the quake “the disaster of the century” but critics blame his policies for hampering efforts.

Natural disaster on this scale cannot be managed alone. International aid, donations and assistance from non-governmental organisations will be needed now and in future.

Ten provinces with religiously, culturally and ethically diverse communities in Turkey were hit by the quake, as well as parts of northern Syria already suffering after years of war, and now largely controlled by rebels.

All this has hampered efforts by NGOs and others to step in.

President Erdogan has declared a state of emergency in the affected areas, but his government cannot provide aid alone to the estimated 13.5 million people who now need it.

They need all the help they can get. The heroic efforts of rescuers and local people digging desperately, sometimes with their bare hands through the rubble, is plain to see in the images that have been projected around the world.

Rescuers are beset by obstacles, including vehicle shortages and destroyed roads.

UN chief Antonio Guterres has urged the UN Security Council to allow supplies to be delivered through more than one border crossing.

“This is the moment of unity, it’s not a moment to politicise or to divide but it is obvious that we need massive support,” he said.

The UK’s Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) has launched an appeal for funds to provide medical aid, shelter, food and water to thousands.

UK aid agencies – including the British Red Cross, Oxfam and ActionAid – are joining together to raise money.

The Welsh Government has pledged £300,000, while firefighters from Wales have been part of the team helping to rescue survivors.

People struggling with the costof-living are donating.

But more will be needed to help rebuild these shattered lives and communities in the years to come.