Earthquakes bring more suffering to Syrians after 12 years of war

When tremors woke Ahmet early in the morning, he didn’t understand what was happening. Then he heard his children screaming. He managed to get his wife and three children out of their apartment in Türkiye’s Hatay province just in time to watch the entire building collapse.

“Screams were coming from all sides,” said Ahmet. “There were people crying. Those who managed to get out were trying to save the people inside the collapsed building. It was very cold, there was heavy rain. We became soaked.”

When Ahmet heard that his brother Mustafa’s building had also collapsed, he ran over to join the rescue team. His brother’s wife and daughter were pulled alive from the rubble. Tragically, Mustafa and his 11-year-old son died.

“I can’t describe what I felt at that moment,” said Ahmet. “The building was in ruins when we arrived. We tried so hard.”

Ahmet’s family is now staying at a shelter originally built to host Syrian refugees.

“We came here and thankfully they gave us a place to stay, clothes, food and a place to sleep,” he said. “At the moment, we are still trying to understand what we are going through. We have nothing left. Now there is only today.”

Ahmet Erkan, with his daughter and mother, shows a photograph of his brother and nephew who died when their building collapsed during the devastating February earthquakes.

Ahmet with his daughter and mother, shows a photograph of his brother and nephew who died when their building collapsed during the devastating earthquakes. © UNHCR / Emrah Güral

The two large earthquakes that struck near the Türkiye-Syria border on 6 February claimed over 55,000 lives and destroyed homes and infrastructure across the region. Among the hardest hit are vulnerable communities in north-west Syria that have already endured 12 years of conflict, as well as Syrian refugees and their host communities in Türkiye.

Aziza and her son were asleep in their home in Aleppo, Syria, when the earthquake struck. They fled with nothing but the clothes on their backs.

“Feeling the big shake, I jumped out of bed, but I kept stumbling each time I tried to stand up,” Aziza said. “Parts of the concrete roof started falling on my head. I grabbed my son and ran out to the street. In the morning, I tried to return to my house but I was so afraid. I just shut the door and ran away.”

Aziza and her son are now staying with relatives in rural Hama, sharing a house with three other families. UNHCR is providing displaced families like Aziza’s with survival essentials such as sleeping mats, blankets and winter clothes.

A UNHCR staff member meets Aziza and her son, who has special needs, who fled their home after the earthquakes struck south-eastern Türkiye and northern Syria on 6 February.

How is UNHCR supporting people in Syria and Türkiye?

UNHCR is providing families in Türkiye and Syria with shelter and other basic supplies such as blankets and hygiene items. UNHCR is also providing protection services such as psychological support and counselling. Since the earthquake, UNHCR has provided hundreds of thousands of tents, beds, mattresses, thermal blankets and other vital supplies to survivors in both countries.

Father-of-three Adnan teaches his daughter Elisia schoolwork at the Mahmoud Saleh school shelter in Jableh city, Latakia Governorate, Syria

Adnan helps his daughter, Elisia, with her studies at a school-turned-shelter in Jableh city, Syria. They are among 111 earthquake-affected families staying at the shelter. © UNHCR/Saad Sawas

Disasters of this scale have far-reaching impacts and it will take years to rebuild. With your support, we can reach more families and help them get back on their feet.

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