UNICEF Calls to Dig Deep for Turkey Earthquake Aid

A child stands outside tents erected for people affected by a devastating earthquake in rebel-held town of Jandaris, Syria, on Feb. 11, 2023. Mahmoud Hassano/Reuters

UNICEF is calling on Australians to continue helping the millions of people across Turkey and Syria battered by a devastating earthquake.

Three Australians died in the quake, with the death toll recently surpassing 41,000 and continuing to climb.

UNICEF Australia’s Elliot Stein says more children across Turkey and Syria have been caught up in the devastation than the total number of children in Australia.

“Those six million children right now require food, shelter, water, medicine and safety,” he said.

“People ask, what does hope look like? Hope looks like a child in a disaster centre picking up a crayon for the very first time.”

Labor MP Sally Sitou called on corporate Australia to step up and support the people of Turkey and Syria.

“It’s a time we should all be coming together to offer those in Turkey and Syria hope,” she said.

A drone view of destroyed houses, in the aftermath of the deadly earthquake, in Elbistan town, Kahramanmaras, Turkey, on Feb. 12, 2023. Issam Abdallah/Reuters

Crown Resorts on Thursday announced it would donate $100,000 to earthquake victims via UNICEF and Red Crescent International and host events to raise more money in the coming weeks and months.

Its volunteer team was also working to raise money in the wake of the disaster.

“It’s going to be something that’s going to be impacting the lives of people there for a long time,” Crown chief executive Ciarán Carruthers said.

“We want to make sure we’re there to help them now and long into the future.”

Rescuer workers carry Kaan, a 13-year-old Turkish teenager, to an ambulance after being rescued from the rubble after 182 hours, in the aftermath of a deadly earthquake in Hatay, Turkey Feb. 13, 2023. Dilara Senkaya/Reuters

The Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry joined Crown to urge businesses to get behind the earthquake victims.

The organisation sent a message to some 65,000 members urging them to come together as a business community and follow in Crown’s footsteps to support Turkey and Syria.

“If you’re a small, medium or large business now’s the opportunity to really jump in and support the vision,” chamber chief executive Paul Guerra said.

The foreign affairs department is providing support to the families of the Australians killed in the quakes as well as assistance to some 80 other Australians and their families, including help to leave disaster-struck areas.

Rescue workers stand on a collapsed building in Adiyaman, southern Turkey, Feb. 13, 2023. The Canadian Press/AP-Emrah Gurel

Fire and Rescue NSW firefighters have pulled at least 14 bodies from under the rubble at Antakya in Turkey as part of an Australian disaster assistant response team.

“These first responders are professionals of the highest order with terrific technical knowledge that can assist the other international rescue crews around them,” Fire and Rescue NSW Commissioner Paul Baxter said.

Department secretary Jan Adams said it had been a disaster “of tremendous proportions”.

The federal government has committed $18 million in aid and sent a team to help with recovery efforts in Turkey.

The Commonwealth is also calling for greater humanitarian access to Syria.