ISTANBULFeb 8 – President Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday acknowledged some problems in Turkey’s initial response to the earthquake that struck the south of the country, but said normal operations have resumed, adding that the death toll in the country rose to 8,574.
Erdogan made his first visit to the devastated region since Monday when two major earthquakes struck in a matter of hours, while confirmed deaths in Turkey and neighboring Syria soared to more than 11,000.
Speaking to reporters in Kahramanmaras province, near the epicenter, with constant ambulance sirens in the background, Erdogan said there had been problems with roads and airports, but things would get better as days went by.
“The first day we had some problems, but the second and today the situation is under control,” he said.
The government intends to build houses within a year for the homeless in the 10 affected provinces, he added.
The initial tremor, the most destructive in decades, wreaked havoc on hospitals, airports and highways, bringing down more than 6,400 buildings in Turkey. Many residents have since complained about insufficient resources and slow emergency response.
“We had some problems at the airports and highways, but today we are better. We’ll be better tomorrow and after. We still have some fuel problems… but we will overcome them as well,” Erdogan declared after visiting the tents set up by the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD).
He also said that citizens should only attend to communications from the authorities and ignore “provocateurs.”
According to the Turkish authorities, some 13.5 million people were affected in an area stretching about 450 kilometers from Adana in the west to Diyarbakir in the east.
