Türkiye will complete the removal of earthquake rubble in all provinces with the exception of Hatay until Ramadan Bayram, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told an iftar gathering, a dinner to mark the breaking of the daily fast, in Istanbul’s Üsküdar district on Monday.
Speaking to the attendees at the gathering, which included earthquake survivors who relocated to Istanbul, Erdoğan said the removal of rubble will be done in 10 provinces affected by the Feb. 6 earthquakes before Friday.
“We cannot bring back those who died, but we are determined – God willing – to compensate all other losses,” he said, adding that the government is genuinely determined to heal the wounds of earthquake survivors to help them start anew.
Hatay province suffered the most damage in the twin earthquakes.
As of Sunday, the construction process of over 100,000 residential buildings and village homes started, according to Erdoğan, who said the government will not leave the earthquake region until the construction of 650,000 homes is completed.
Operations, including controlled demolition of buildings and debris removal, continue in the provinces affected by the devastating earthquakes.
At least 50,500 people lost their lives after the magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 earthquakes struck, while more than 13,000 aftershocks occurred in the region since Feb. 6.
Around 14 million people in Türkiye have been affected by the quakes, as well as many others in northern Syria.
The damage caused by the earthquakes is estimated to be over $100 billion (TL 1.90 trillion), according to a representative from a UNDP program of the United Nations.
