A month since the magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck Turkey and Syria, survivors are still in urgent need of help. 

A team of Scientologists who are disaster response specialists from Pakistan has now joined volunteers from the Scientology Center of Tel Aviv and other emergency response-trained responders who are providing relief in Turkey. 

 

It is estimated the earthquake killed 6,000 in Syria and 46,000 in Turkey. And hundreds of thousands have been left homeless. UNICEF describes the needs as “huge” stating, “continued support is vital.”  

As aid pours into Turkey, the Scientology volunteers are primarily focused on seeing that supplies get into the hands of those most in need.

 

“We arrived in a village and came across a family of 20 living in tents pitched outside their home that was destroyed by the earthquake,” says one of the volunteers. “They had no supplies left.” The volunteers left them with food kits, each containing 45 pounds of food—enough to hold them over for several weeks.

The volunteers are providing any help that is needed but are primarily distributing food, water, winter clothing, bedding and sanitary supplies. 

The Scientology Volunteer Ministers headquarters in Los Angeles has put out a call for experienced disaster response specialists who can join them in providing help. The Scientology Volunteer Ministers program is an embracive initiative, created in the mid-1970s by Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard, that provides community service, disaster relief and emergency response.