President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made a video call to the staff of the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) as he convened his Cabinet at AFAD’s headquarters in the capital Ankara on Tuesday.
Erdoğan thanked the staff and said the country would overcome the impact of last Monday’s earthquakes he earlier described as the “disaster of the century.”
“You work day and night since the disaster occurred. We call it the disaster of the century and it is not an exaggeration,” he said. “The nation will keep its hope if you lift their spirits (with rescues). We trust in you and we appreciate your work,” Erdoğan said in his address.
The president also spoke about his visit to a hospital in Istanbul on Monday where he met mothers who gave birth in earthquake-hit provinces during the catastrophe. “I have seen the resolve of the mothers and fathers,” he said.
Erdoğan also reiterated his pledge for rebuilding. “Our goal is to rebuild collapsed buildings within one year. Citizens I spoke to there were asking about residences. Just like we rebuilt homes after earlier earthquakes and other disasters, we will do the same here,” he said.
