At 4:17am this morning, as people lay sleeping, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck south east Turkey and northern Syria. We are launching an emergency appeal to raise £60,000 for life-saving medication and supplies. We can’t do this without your help.
We still do not know the full impact of this disaster. Communications are limited with network coverage reserved for emergency services. We are doing everything we can to establish that our friends and colleagues at our partner programmes are ok. So far, we know more than 2,300 people have been killed (over 380 of these in northern Syria), but that number is expected to rise significantly.
Northern Syria has been shattered by over eleven years of conflict, the health system is broken and it is currently in the midst of a bitterly cold winter. This disaster puts already struggling communities in a truly desperate situation. Homes and buildings have collapsed and with the instability caused by war, many more may yet do so. This leaves extremely vulnerable groups of people at risk of frostbite and hypothermia.
We are working with our partners to respond by providing urgently needed medication and supplies. A spokesperson for our partner, SAMS (Syrian American Medical Society) said “hospitals are overwhelmed with patients filling the hallways. There is an immediate need for trauma supplies and a comprehensive emergency response to save lives”.
Please donate now and help us save as many lives as possible.
We will continue to update you as we get more information.
Thank you, from us all at Hands Up
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