A Turkish company that boasts one of the world’s largest fleet of floating power plants on Saturday said it would send two humanitarian aid ships to help the relief efforts after devastating earthquakes hit southern Türkiye nearly a week ago.
Karadeniz Holding said two so-called lifeships, that can house 1,500 people each, will be dispatched to the southern province of Hatay, one of the worst hit areas by the two quakes that razed thousands of buildings and left hundreds of thousands of people homeless.
The death toll from last Monday’s quakes rose to more than 24,600 – with another 80,000-plus injured – as of Sunday morning and is certain to increase as bodies kept emerging.
"The company is working with the authorities to send lifeships Süheyla Sultan and Rauf Bey to Iskenderun-Hatay," Karadeniz Holding said, adding this would be its first humanitarian mission.
The lifeships, built for humanitarian aid missions, have accommodation, fridges, TVs and heating facilities, as well as amenities for education, health care and food, the company said.
"We focused all our energy on this project to serve people in the area impacted by the earthquake. We aim to provide a safe haven for them as soon as possible," it said in a statement.
Türkiye has been looking for ways to accommodate survivors in the 10 provinces across the southern region. It has relied on tents, dormitories, in addition to hotels in the Mediterranean and Aegean summer beach resorts outside the quake zone. Thousands were also evacuated to accommodation facilities in other cities.
Karadeniz Holding is known for its 36 floating power plants that produce electricity around the world. Run by its affiliate Karpowership, the ships feature 6,000 megawatts of installed capacity, ranging from 30 megawatts to about 500 megawatts per vessel.
The company’s operations mostly focus on Africa, Asia and Latin America; however, the energy crisis in Europe and the war in Ukraine have now seen the company shift focus to Europe, with talks also held to provide power to Ukraine.
