London's Turkish community grieves for relatives lost in earthquake

‘All of them are dead’: London’s Turkish community grieves for relatives after devastating earthquake which led to one woman losing five family members as nine storey building collapsed

• The two huge quakes decimated buildings in both Turkey and Syria on Monday
• More than 19,000 fatalities across both countries have been reported so far
• Turkish nationals living in London have set up a fundraiser for those affected

Members of the Turkish community in north London have gathered to grieve and send aid to those affected by the devastating earthquakes in Turkey.

Turkish nationals gathered at the British Alevi Federation, near Enfield, to grieve for lost relatives and organise a fundraising campaign to help the recovery effort. 

They have been collecting donations to send to Turkey in lorries and setting up fundraising accounts, as they watch the news and pray for their loved ones.

The devastating natural disasters are currently estimated to have killed more than 19,000 people across Syria and Turkey while many more are still unaccounted for. 

The two magnitude 7.8 and 7.5 quakes, which have decimated buildings in both Turkey and Syria, happened on Monday

The devastating natural disasters are currently estimated to have killed more than 19,000 people across the two countries, while many more are still unaccounted for

Mustafa Yigit tragically lost five family members in the quakes, after the nine-story building they were in, in Marash – also known officially as Kahramanmaraş – collapsed.

Mr Yigit’s uncle, Ali Serin, who is around 50, and Ali’s wife Semra Serin, 48, had gone to visit their three children – Ismet, 14, Yigit, nine and Mert, 16 – who were studying in Marash.

They were also accompanied by Mr Yigit’s grandmother, Fatma Serin, 96.

An emotional Mr Yigit, 54, who moved to the UK in around 1990, said: ‘All of them are dead.

‘Too many people are waiting for help. I am going to Turkey on Sunday. I will fly to Istanbul, take another plane and then a bus to Marash.

‘My uncle and his wife were going to visit their children at their school, with my grandmother. The night they arrived was the night of the earthquake.’

The father of two, who lives in Muswell Hill, Haringey, added: ‘They found all of them four days later. They were in a building that collapsed.

‘I don’t know what the building was. It had nine floors and they were on the second floor.’

Mr Yigiy showed a bird’s eye view of the building on Google Maps on his phone, then swiped right to a photo of what remained of the levelled building: little more than rubble.

Mustafa Yigit (pictured) tragically lost five family members to the earthquakes after a nine-story building they were in, in Marash – also known officially as Kahramanmaraş – collapsed.

The death toll of the devastating earthquake has reached 16,546 in Turkey and over 3,000 in Syria

The two magnitude 7.8 and 7.5 quakes, which have decimated buildings in both Turkey and Syria, happened on Monday

The British Alevi Federation, along with the London Alevi Cultural Centre & Cemevi, have set up a donations account for those affected by the earthquake.

But many others have their own fundraising accounts to aid those affected by the natural disaster.

Bektaş Kara’s cousin, 23-year-old Sevim Çolak, who worked as a teacher, managed to escape her building when it collapsed but tragically died whilst waiting in the minus 14-degree cold for help to arrive.

Mr Kara said an army helicopter with supplies only arrived in a snow-covered Marash today – four days after the two earthquakes hit.

The 34-year-old, who works at the British Alevi Foundation, said: ‘After the first earthquake, she went outside for a few hours, but they were extremely cold.

‘They thought it was safe to go back into the building to get some clothes and food. 

‘That’s when the second one happened and the building collapsed. My cousin was injured, but nobody came to help. She died from the hypothermia.

‘The roads are blocked and it’s snowing. Soldiers only arrived today with helicopters after four days.’

Ebru Şen, 35, went to primary school in Turkey with Mr Kara, and only met him again in London three months ago.

Miss Şen explained her family had gone to Western Turkey for health reasons, but were returning to London on Tuesday.

Ebru Şen (left) went to primary school in Turkey with Bektaş Kara (right) 

She said: ‘They’re just so scared. In my situation, no one died, luckily. But they have all lost their homes.

‘The earthquakes are constant. They haven’t stopped and so many people have died from the snow.

‘Probably today is the last day of saving people. If they don’t do it by today, they will not survive.’

She added: ‘The government response is not enough. They are trying to restrict Twitter, which has really helped in locating people.

‘They have saved so many people through Twitter and Instagram by sharing locations. How can you restrict that? It makes no sense.

‘My father tried to drive to the worst affected areas, but there’s no petrol. 

They have raised the prices of food, water, petrol, blankets… It’s disgusting. It’s horrible. It’s heartbreaking.’

The epicentre was just north of the city of Gaziantep at a depth of around 11 miles (18 km), according to the US Geological Survey (USGS), and the quake struck at 04:17 am local time (01:17 GMT)

The British Alevi Federation is asking for donations to the account listed on their Facebook page, which can be found here:

 https://www.facebook.com/BritanyaAleviFederasyonu.

All money donated will be sent to Turkish Cemevis, who are trying to get supplies to those in need.

Asiye Doruk, Education Coordinator and Administrator at the British Alevi Federation, explained money donations to the Cemevis were preferable as there was no promise lorries of supplies would reach their destinations.

The 29-year-old said: ‘The best thing people can do is donate money.

‘When we send supplies in lorries, we are not sure they will actually reach the people in need.

‘The money we gather here we send to Cemevis – which are like cultural centres.

‘They prepare the lorries there, from Istanbul and other regions, and send them off to those who need it.

‘The Turkish community gather here to mourn and watch the news together.’

London Alevi Cultural Centre and Cemevi

Sort code: 20-46-60

Account No: 60570966

Reference: Earthquake

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