On February 6, multiple earthquakes hit southern Turkey and Syria. More than 5,900 people were killed in Syria, and an additional 2 million people within government-held areas of the country remain severely affected by the earthquakes.
Many of those affected in Syria are unable to return to their homes in the aftermath of the earthquake, residing in temporary shelters in harsh winter temperatures. A World Food Programme assessment found that 76 percent of people in the shelters in Aleppo – approximately 11,000 people – are reliant on humanitarian aid for their food needs. And 30 percent of those, many of them children, were receiving one meal or less per day due to insufficient quantities available.
Food security offices in Syria report that “urgent funding is required to replenish food stocks and scale up the response,” estimating that the emergency food response will be needed for the next 3–6 months to address emergency food assistance needs of earthquake-affected people.
Since the earthquake emergency struck in Syria, generous donors have already made it possible for Food for the Hungry (FH) to:
- Provide immediate emergency food baskets. More than 3,000 food baskets have been delivered already, and more than 5,000 additional baskets are on the way.
- Keep families healthy by distributing personal hygiene kits.
- Distribute warm blankets, jackets, and diaper bags with needed provisions to those displaced. 3,500 blankets have already been distributed, with plans to provide 7,500 more in coming weeks.
- Replenish food stocks and address specific needs of earthquake-affected people.
Food for the Hungry has decades of experience in responding to natural disasters such as hurricanes, famine, and earthquakes, as well as war outbreaks and epidemics. When you give to Emergency Disaster Relief, you help people of all ages, who are in the midst of an immediate crisis – whether natural or manmade. FH frequently responds to crises in places where we have existing relationships, as we do in Syria. Because we’re already in communication with local families and leaders, we’re often best equipped to respond quickly
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