A container city capable of accommodating around 500 people has been established in central Türkiye's Kayseri through cooperation between the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) and Talas Municipality to provide emergency shelter in the event of earthquakes or other disasters.
The project was launched to ensure that residents who may face housing difficulties during possible natural disasters do not experience hardship. Authorities said the initiative forms part of broader efforts to strengthen preparedness and improve the city’s capacity to respond quickly in emergency situations.
As part of the project, Talas Municipality prepared and allocated the land with the necessary infrastructure, while AFAD installed 105 containers that are ready for immediate use. The area has been organized as a designated temporary accommodation site and surrounded by wire fencing for security.
The facility has been named the Talas Municipality Temporary Emergency Disaster Social Living Center, designed to host residents who may need short-term shelter following disasters.
AFAD's Provincal Director Rifat Genç said the institution continues to work on preparedness measures to reduce risks and ensure an effective response to potential disasters.
He noted that the earthquakes centered in Kahramanmaraş in February 2023 were also felt in Kayseri, highlighting the importance of readiness.
“Kayseri is also located in an earthquake-prone region and has active fault lines. For this reason, together with Talas Municipality, we initiated efforts to create temporary and emergency shelter areas in our province,” Genç said.
“The main objective is to ensure that when a disaster occurs, we can immediately provide our citizens with temporary and emergency accommodation.”
Genç explained that detailed assessments were conducted with Talas Mayor Mustafa Yalçın before the project was implemented, leading to the completion of what he described as an important preparedness initiative for the city.
He said the container city currently includes 105 containers installed on an area of about 30 decares, adding that the infrastructure required for electricity, water and other essential services has already been completed.
“With the infrastructure already in place, these containers are ready for use at any moment,” he said.
Genç added that authorities aim to further develop the facility in the future by introducing additional social amenities and services so that it can serve a larger number of people more effectively during emergencies.
He also stated that officials are planning to expand the capacity of emergency shelter areas in the province and aim to establish around 500 containers across Kayseri as part of ongoing disaster preparedness efforts.
