At least two Filipinos were injured during the magnitude 7.8 earthquake that rocked Turkey and Syria, the Philippine Embassy in Ankara said.
Most of the earthquake was felt in southeastern part of the country.
“The Embassy continuously receives a steady stream of confirmed and unconfirmed reports of Filipinos experiencing varying degrees of distress,” a statement from the embassy said.
It also said that the Filipinos are now out of trouble.
“These include two confirmed reports of injured Filipinos, who are now recovered. We are thankful that a number of our kababayan are safe and we will not give up hope for those that cannot yet be contacted. The Embassy will act swiftly and decisively for all confirmed reports,” they said.
The statement also said that Ambassador Ma. Elena Algabre has been conducting meetings with distressed Filipinos in quake-hit areas.
A total of 248 Filipinos are reportedly affected by the massive tremblor and the Filipinos in their cities of Adana and Iskenderun, two of the hard-hit areas in the Hatay Province, is being seriously taken into consideration by the embassy for priority assistance.
Among them include the distribution of relief goods, including food, blankets, water, and cash.
“We are continuing to utilize our invaluable network of Filipino community leaders from across the country to get in touch with those in need, such as four Filipinos that the team evacuated from Adana to the safer city of Mersin,” the embassy added.
“We deeply appreciate the relief goods that continue to be provided through the generosity of our Filipino brethren in Turkey,” they added.
Meanwhile, the Filipinos in the quake-hit areas can reach the embassy through telephone and Whatsapp (+905345772344), through email at ankara.pe@dfa.gov.ph, or on its Facebook page (facebook.com/PHinTurkey).
On the other hand, a Filipina who was earlier feared to be dead in the Turkish province of Hatay was found alive days after the quake the country.
“Isang kababayan po ang na-recover na napabalita po noong una, kinonfirm po noong amo na patay na pero na-recover siya buhay po,” Cherry Santos, president of the Filipino community in Ankara, said in an interview aired over DZMM.
Earlier reports said that the Filipina was inside a building in Hatay when the temblor reduced structures to rubbles in 10 Türkiye provinces last Monday.
However, three other Filipinos are still being sought as there is no information about them yet, due to the scarce communication.
CurrentPH News Service
