Voices from southern Türkiye

23 February 2023

Southern Türkiye’s rural areas, as well as its cities, have been hit by the impact of the earthquakes. While the destruction in towns and villages is on a smaller scale, many houses have been damaged or are uninhabitable, economic activities have stopped and some places are receiving large numbers of displaced people from urban areas.

In these rural areas, teams from Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) are distributing essential relief items, including tents, food, hygiene kits and warm clothes, in collaboration with various local partner organisations.

Here are some stories of people impacted by the quakes in rural areas of Adiyaman and Elbistan districts.

Kenan: "Sixteen people from six families are now living in this house"

“I am from Gölbaşı, a town of about 60,000 residents in Adiyaman district. I lived there on the second floor of a two-storey building. There were four of us at home when the earthquake struck: my wife, my daughter, my mother-in-law and me. Luckily we all survived. The window fell on my daughter, but she is fine. My bakery was destroyed too. Nearly all the buildings in Gölbaşı are now rubble, many people died and most of the survivors have left, like us. We feel traumatised.

Two days after the earthquakes I went to Adiyaman city as we had news that some relatives had died. Now we are living on the edge of this village, Kuşakkaya, which has about 500 inhabitants. We came here because my mother-in-law has a house here. Sixteen people from six families are now living in this house. We all sleep together in the same room, which is the only one that stays warm.

At first there were about 200 displaced people in this village, but around half have moved on to other places like Antalya. Many people are still afraid that the earth will shake again.

Our main needs currently are housing and showers, as at the moment we can’t shower at all. In the village it is cleaner than in the city, so infections are not such an issue for the time being, but we are concerned about epidemics.

I feel very relieved that nothing happened to my family – otherwise it would be very hard. Here we are dependent on the assistance we receive. People with resources are coping better, but those without are reliant on aid.”

Miyase Kürk: "My main concerns are to have a proper roof over our heads and the health and wellbeing of my children"

“I grew up in this village, Yazica, but after getting married I moved to the nearby city of Adiyaman, where my husband comes from, and I’ve lived there for 15 years.

On the night of the earthquake there were about seven moments when I thought I was going to die.

We lived in a rented apartment in a six-storey building. The building did not fall down but it is badly damaged. That night it had snowed and I spent the night outdoors with the children; we covered ourselves with some plastic sheeting. My husband went to help search for people in neighbouring buildings; when he rejoined us the next morning his hands were covered in blood.

On the third day we came to Yazica, as my parents have this house here. Now there are about 30 relatives from 9 different families living here together, all of us from Adiyaman except for one person who is from Gaziantep.

This one-storey house was slightly affected (by the earthquakes). The outdoor toilet structure and the water system are not working properly, and we are scared to go inside. We have been given two tents because there is not enough space for everyone in the house.

My main concerns are to have a proper roof over our heads and the health and wellbeing of our children. Even though we are all family, we end up bickering a lot because we’re all living on top of each other. We hope God helps us to get through this.”

Ülkükaya: "Every time there’s an aftershock, the house moves again"

“In our village, Karahoyük (near Elbistan), 25 of the 60 houses collapsed; of those still standing, 15 have serious damage, like big cracks in the walls. My one-storey house was badly damaged. All the glass shattered and the kitchen utensils and dishes broke too. We are afraid of entering so we just go in very quickly to use the toilet. The cracks are getting bigger and every time there’s an aftershock, the house moves again.

After the first earthquake, we went outside into the yard. The next day we built an improvised tent with some plastic sheeting that we normally use for farming activities. For one week we stayed in this improvised tent, and then a neighbour let us stay in a small house that hadn’t been damaged. But we can’t stay there for long, that is why we needed a proper tent for me and my two children*.

So far we have received some basic assistance, like food and clothes. We are thankful to everyone who has given us things. Now we need our house to be inspected so that we can live in it again.”

Ali Eran: "This year is going to be very hard"

I am the mukhtar (local elected chief) of Gümüs Dögen, a village near Elbistan city. Before the earthquake, the village’s population was 450; now there are around 500 people here.

Some people came from Elbistan and later continued on to Istanbul, Antalya and other places. Some villagers also left as they were afraid. Most of the people who came from outside had a second residence here already. Others don't have relatives in the village, but as they don’t have a place to stay in other areas, they come here and of course we welcome them.

Ten out of 140 buildings have collapsed. Others, including new ones, have cracks. One person died and another was injured. A lot of rocks fell from the mountain too. There are three tents in the village and we have asked for some containers.

Yesterday doctors came to check on the villagers and brought medicines for old people, but we don't have enough gas and we need fuel for heating, like wood. This year is going to be very hard. I’ve never experienced anything like this before. It's cold, there is snow and everything is closed, including all shops and businesses. I am overseeing the collection of aid for our village; I make announcements through the speakers to distribute it.”

*donated by MSF through a partner organisation