Europe must stand firmly by Türkiye in the wake of the two earthquakes that devastated its southeast earlier this month since Ankara is both "part of the family" and the European Union’s civil protection mechanism, a senior official at that agency said Saturday.
No country in the world was prepared to deal with the severity of the disaster that unfolded in southern Türkiye after the back-to-back earthquakes of Feb. 6, Pekka Tiainen, the coordinator of EU assistance in Türkiye’s earthquake zone, told Anadolu Agency (AA).
"Türkiye is part of the civil protection mechanism as a participating state. So, Türkiye is a part of the family. Therefore, it was obvious to us that Europe stands very firm and supports Türkiye in this emergency," Tiainen said.
Tiainen explained that their role was to assist the Turkish government in receiving aid and facilitate the team’s work in the field under the leadership of local authorities to help in search and rescue efforts, as well as relief work, after the quakes that left least 40,689 dead and over 108,000 injured in the country.
"In my coordination team, we have 30 people. We have experts from different areas like logistics, information management, and operations experts, and a support team helping us to work here. We have two camps, and then from that same mechanism, we have almost 1,700 rescuers, all types of emergency workers, here in Türkiye," he said.
On the cooperation between the Turkish and European teams, Tiainen explained that they had close relations with Türkiye’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) and that part of their team was working at AFAD’s headquarters in the capital Ankara.
Tiainen also emphasized that rescue efforts are organized at the central government level and work at the regional level in the most affected provinces.
"It’s always the aim to do everything together with the local authorities, who are in charge of the activities. So we are always under the leadership of the local authorities. Our role is to support them, whether it’s rescue teams or other support means we are always under the local authority’s leadership," he stressed.
‘Biggest emergency in 100 years in Europe’
Eleven of Türkiye 81 provinces were hit hardest by the magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 earthquakes – an area of over 108,000 square kilometers (about 41,700 square miles).
"That is the biggest challenge we have had. It’s very widely spread. There are 200 kilometers between different locations, even more, and multiple big cities. The population in the area is somewhere between 15 and 20 million. So it’s very dense populated," Tiainen said, calling the disaster the most extensive emergency in Europe in 100 years.
The disaster effort has now started moving to the recovery phase as the life-saving stage approaches its end, Tiainen noted.
‘Part of the family’
As soon as the news came of the earthquakes that rocked southern Türkiye, the Finnish official said he knew aid would be needed.
"As someone coming from Finland, my immediate reaction when this happened in Türkiye was that we need to help Türkiye not only as a Finnish and as a Finland but as Europe as a whole," he said.
"I don’t think any country in the world was prepared to cope with such an emergency alone," he said.
Coordinating the incoming international relief has also not been easy, he noted. "We have around 8,000 international rescuers in the country, so it’s also a big challenge to receive such big assistance from other countries."
In the days ahead, shelter capacity for survivors and heaters, blankets and sleeping packs would be of critical importance in the region, as will be medical facilities, the official pointed out.
The EU swiftly dispatched rescue teams to Türkiye after the massive earthquakes.
Twelve EU members have already provided 50,000 winter-proof family tents, 100,000 blankets and 50,000 heaters.
The European Commission has also mobilized 500 emergency shelters, 8,000 beds and 2,000 tents, and last week, it pledged to hold a donor conference in March to collect international aid for both Türkiye and Syria as European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen assured the disaster-stricken countries could "count on the EU."