Al Jazeera spoke to 2 Syrian girls who survived the earthquake in Hatay province.
Two days after a collection of earthquakes hit southern Turkey, reduction efforts are but to succeed in some areas of the nation. The province of Hatay, which is house to some 500,000 Syrian refugees, has been notably exhausting hit, with rescue groups overwhelmed by the extent of destruction. Help has been delayed by the substantial harm the earthquake has brought about to the roads and the civilian airport close to the provincial capital, Antakya.
Al Jazeera spoke to 2 Syrian refugee girls, who reside within the city of Reyhanli in Hatay province, close to the border with Syria. Each have been widowed within the conflict in Syria and had fled throughout the border seven years in the past, seeking security for their youngsters. Right here is how they described the scenario.
Um Hadi, mom of 4
When the primary earthquake hit, we have been visiting Um Khalid. We felt that the home would swallow us, we felt we have been going to die. The electrical energy went off, however we managed to run exterior.
Cries, wails, worry, chilly, and rain! It was worse than the bombardment in Syria, worse than the fighter jets. When the jets are coming to bomb, you hear them, you understand they're coming, you may disguise. With the earthquake, you don’t know when it's going to hit.
We bought out and stayed underneath a tree within the chilly, because the earth stored shaking. We have been freezing so we began a small fireplace to maintain heat. There was nowhere to go and we have been too afraid to return inside our properties, which have been nonetheless standing however have been broken by the earthquake.
Now we have spent two nights like this already, sitting on chairs exterior, within the chilly, not having a minute of sleep. We're homeless refugees but once more.
At this time, the municipality put up a number of tents for individuals to make use of as shelter, however no assist has reached us, nobody has come to assist us.
The bakeries should not working. Even if you wish to purchase bread, you may’t discover any. I went round the entire city trying to purchase meals for our kids and couldn’t discover something however biscuits and samoon [a type of bun], and people have been costly, too.
The costs of the whole lot have jumped two to a few instances. I purchased a candle to have some gentle at evening; it’s 15 lira now [$0.80], it was once 4 [$0.20].
There may be nonetheless no electrical energy, no operating water, no fuel, no gas. The hospitals are all broken. There have been additionally individuals killed by the earthquake. We heard the minaret of 1 mosque fell on a automotive the place a household was hiding and killed them. There are different victims too, however not as a lot as Antakya. There, there are such a lot of lifeless, most of them Syrians.
And in Syria, the scenario is even worse. So many lifeless. I misplaced some kin, too.
Um Khalid, mom of three
Thank God we're alive. However we have now been sitting exterior within the chilly and rain since Monday morning now.
My youngsters are with us out in these freezing temperatures. They're afraid, they're shaking from the chilly in entrance of my eyes; one is already sick. God have mercy on us.
I've misplaced kin within the earthquake. My cousin misplaced his spouse and kids; one other relative misplaced her youngsters in Syria. So many individuals died.
We don’t dare to go inside our properties. I reside on the primary flooring and am nonetheless afraid. The constructing didn't collapse however it was broken. They usually informed us that the multi-storey buildings should not secure and we must always not go in.
There isn't any electrical energy, no operating water. We're shopping for water to drink. A small truck comes by and sells it for 15 lira [$0.80] a bottle. They're all exploiting the scenario.
Yesterday evening, the authorities got here and gave out one samoon per household. Think about, one samoon for the 4 of us.
The roads are reduce off and we can't go anyplace else. We're on our personal, there are not any assist organisations right here, no authorities assist.
The scenario was already unhealthy earlier than this occurred. The hire was going up, the costs have been going up. We have been struggling greater than once we have been in Syria. We have been already going hungry. Could God assist us.
Each Um Hadi and Um Khalid used pseudonyms for safety causes
Observe Mariya Petkova on Twitter @mkpetkova
If you wish to study learn how to donate to the Turkey and Syria earthquake catastrophe response, go right here
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