INDIKATOR – After the natural disaster struck Turkey and Syria, many such tents were set up for people in need.
Families who became victims of the earthquake, Yasemin Astan, her husband, Hasan, and their five children reported from DW, just managed to escape their home in Antakya, in southern Turkey’s Hatay province, before it was destroyed in the February 6 earthquake.
Now, the Astan family lives in a tent. The Astans and others who have found temporary shelter in Antakya are reporting unhygienic conditions.
“They set up a portaloo on the other side of the street,” told Yasemin Astan to Journalist.
Yasemin explain, she almost impossible to see anything at night, and it is very difficult to walk.
“How can I leave my children behind and walk all this distance in the dark when I need to use the toilet,” Yasemin explained.
The Astan family shares a tent with several other people. In total, 13 people live here, including nine children.
“This tent just isn’t large enough for 13 people,” Astan said.
In addition to the criticism of official efforts to prepare for earthquakes, people across Turkey are calling the government’s response inadequate. Many survivors have had to forgo showers since the quake hit on February 6. But that is not their biggest problem: Worst of all, residents say, is the lack of proper toilets.
