Humanitarian organizations are focusing their efforts in providing shelter and protecting thousands of earthquake victims from the cold weather and harsh conditions after two devastating earthquakes struck the southeastern part of the country.
A container city for 3,000 people, built by Kalyon Holding, for earthquake victims in Gaziantep's Islahiye district, has now been put into service.
The city is built to facilitate all the basic needs of quake victims, from social opportunities, a kindergarten to children's playgrounds.
On the other hand, the Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH) is setting up a container neighborhood in Kahramanmaraş province, the epicenter of the deadly Feb. 6 earthquakes that took over 41,000 lives and left 105,505 injured, as the two strong earthquakes jolted southeastern Türkiye.
Earthquake victims began to settle in the container city established by Kalyon Holding in the Islahiye district of Gaziantep.
Infrastructure work was carried out in the designated area, and 3,000 container installations have been completed for now. Families of earthquake victims are settled in containers until they get their homes built. Necdet Aykılıç, a project manager of Kalyon Construction within Kalyon Holding said, "They have been working without a break for the last 12 days to help meet the shelter needs of quake victims."
"Currently, we provide a living opportunity for 500 families in this container city. In addition to this, our container city will also have social facilities such as sports fields, a basketball court, a 450 square meter (4,843.8 square foot) children's playground, a cafeteria, a laundry room. In addition, the Hasan Kalyoncu University psychosocial support group is also appointed here for one month," he said.
"At IHH, we aim to set up 1,000 containers in the Elbistan district of Kahramanmaras," its media and social media coordinator, Muhammed Zahiroglu, told Anadolu Agency (AA) on Monday.
The project is being organized in collaboration with the Independent Industrialists and Businessmen's Association (MUSİAD) of Türkiye, which will set up another 1,200 housing containers. Construction of the containers is being carried out by MUSİAD, he added.
The magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 earthquakes, centered in Kahramanmaras province, affected more than 13 million people across 11 provinces, including Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, Sanliurfa and Elazig.
The IHH official said that excavation work has been completed in the area and that the containers are being shipped gradually.
The containers will be installed in two stages – in the first phase by the end of March and the remaining containers by the end of May.
The location of its container neighborhood would be in Kahramanmaras, in a site determined by Türkiye's Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD).
Each container will cater to four people – two adults and two children. It will consist of two rooms, one of which is a bathroom with a toilet, and also includes a kitchenette.
The cost of each container home is TL 100,000 ($5,300). Each will be equipped with amenities such as a television and mini refrigerator, furniture such as a bed, a wardrobe, sofa bed, table and chairs and kitchenware such as pots, pans, plates, bedding, toiletries, a vacuum cleaner, an iron, cleaning materials and hygiene kits.
The temporary lodgings will also be equipped with a heating system and hot water. According to the IHH website, the containers will be insulated and meet all necessary standards.
The container neighborhood will also have a health center, kindergarten, mosque, playgrounds, parks and markets.
The neighborhood will include sewage, water and energy installations. In case of fire, there will be a fire prevention and action plan for both the homes and the neighborhood.
