STORY: Six months on, thousands remain displaced after Türkiye's earthquakes
DATELINE: Aug. 2, 2023
LENGTH: 00:02:54
LOCATION: Ankara
CATEGORY: SOCIETY
 
SHOTLIST:
1. various of debris removal work in the earthquake-hit region in Türkiye
2. various of daily life in the container cities in the earthquake-hit region in Türkiye
3. various of construction of new houses in the earthquake-hit region in Türkiye
 
STORYLINE:
 
Nearly six months after deadly earthquakes devastated southern Türkiye, thousands of survivors are still displaced, while President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has promised a rapid reconstruction.
 
The powerful tremors have claimed more than 50,000 lives and rendered over a million homeless.
 
More than 227,000 buildings were destroyed or severely damaged, according to government figures.
 
Additionally, 3 million people have been forced to flee their homes due to the disaster, moving to safer cities in the center-west region, including the capital Ankara, which is 600 km away from the disaster zone.
 
Despite the support provided by state institutions after the tragedy, the earthquake victims would like to return to normalcy "as soon as possible."
 
An earthquake victim was told that new homes would be delivered this year and have been eagerly waiting because living in a container is difficult.
 
He stressed that communities were distressed about temporary accommodation and hope President Erdogan would make good on his promise to rebuild the devastated cities "within a year."
 
Türkiye has already launched construction projects of more than 180,000 new houses in the earthquake-hit region which spans over a large territory of 11 provinces, home to nearly 15 million people.
 
The first batch of houses will be handed over by October, according to the government, while construction of new container camps for survivors is continuing in the quake-hit areas.
 
The United Nations Development Program announced on July 27 the inauguration in Hatay, one of the provinces hit hard by the earthquake, of a "new container city welcoming 1,500 displaced earthquake survivors."
 
Despite a comprehensive mobilization of relief and rebuilding efforts nationwide, extreme weather, like sweltering heat waves, is exacerbating the suffering of survivors.
 
The authorities dispatched drinking water by trucks to address the water shortage in the province, which is baked by deadly heat with temperatures of up to 40 degrees Celsius.
 
Meanwhile, the huge debris of collapsed or damaged buildings subsequently raised to the ground as they've been deemed unsafe is a real challenge for the authorities.
 
Trucks carrying rubble from the destroyed buildings have become a daily sight on highways across the region.
 
Although the debris removal would expose a large amount of hazardous asbestos waste, some survivors were still glad to see rubble trucks running, as it indicated that construction work is underway.
 
Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Ankara.
(XHTV)