The department of international relations and cooperation is monitoring the situation in Turkey following an earthquake that killed hundreds of people on Monday.
The department is also ready to provide emergency assistance in case of South Africans being stranded or affected by the disaster.
The department's deputy director-general and head of public diplomacy Clayson Monyela said there were no South Africans who had been affected by the earthquake in Turkey.
Two earthquakes of magnitude 7.8 and 7.7 struck central Turkey and northwest Syria on Monday.
“[As of yesterday afternoon we had not] been alerted of any South Africans that have been affected by the earthquake. This is a situation we are continuing to monitor. Our embassy in Turkey is in touch with authorities to look out for South Africans who are affected. As soon as we get information of any South African that has been affected, our embassy is on standby to offer them necessary assistance,” said Monyela.
He said South Africans living in Turkey consist of students, holidaymakers, shoppers and people who travel to the country for other reasons.
He said some South African students live in the capital city of Ankara, which is about seven hours away from where the earthquake-hit area.
An official of the South African embassy based in Ankara told Sowetan no South Africans had been affected by the earthquake. The official cannot be named as he is not allowed to speak to the media.
He said most South Africans living in Turkey were based in Istanbul, which is about ten hours away from where the earthquake struck.
Doctors Without Borders head of mission in Syria Sebastien Gay said the organisation was providing aid to affected areas in Turkey and Syria.
“Following the strong earthquake that hit mainly south-east Turkey and northwest Syria earlier this morning, Doctors Without Borders (MSF) teams have been responding in northern Syria since the early hours.
“In Idlib, northern Syria, we are treating patients in our supported hospitals, and our teams have donated emergency medical kits to other facilities in the region. We remain in close contact with authorities in northwest Syria and in southern Turkey to better support based on their needs and support the people affected by the earthquake.”
Governments and international organisations from around the world have responded with offers of support.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said early on Monday that 45 countries had offered help with search and rescue efforts.
Gift of the Givers’ medical teams based in Turkey and Syria responded to the earthquake.
Through its official Facebook page yesterday afternoon, the non-governmental organisation (NGO) said it had opened its Arrahma Hospital in Syria where it received more than 100 casualties.
“Our teams rapidly evacuated the children from our Bayt Kareem Child Care Centre in Gaziantep, Turkey whilst in Darkoush, Syria our medical teams were on full alert to respond. The casualties started arriving with 25 deceased and 100+ injured, and they are pouring in. The casualties in both countries are expected to increase exponentially. Freezing cold, rain and snow are hampering search and rescue efforts.”
The NGO said it had received calls from the Turkish ambassador to SA and the SA ambassador to Turkey to provide relief in this disaster.
“Gift of the Givers only responds if a call is made by the affected country for international assistance. Not only has the call been made, but we have been contacted directly by the Turkish ambassador to South Africa, Aysegul Kandas, and by the consul general in Cape Town, Sinan Yesildag, to assist in this huge disaster. They will facilitate all the arrangements in Turkey.
“Our SA ambassador to Turkey, Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, has also requested our intervention... Search and rescue and medical teams with specialised equipment are already on standby to fly out by the latest tomorrow [today].” – Additional Reporting Reuters
kokam@sowetan.co.za
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