Post-quake in Turkiye, many kids are orphaned and out of school

Turkiye (MNN) — Around 4.6 million children lived in the 10 provinces of Turkiye that were hit by the earthquake. Civil society groups have been scrambling to connect orphans with verified family members — and keep them out of the hands of child traffickers.

It’s been one month since the earthquake, and we still don’t know yet how many children were orphaned by the disaster. Sadly, due to the nature of an earthquake’s devastation, we do know many children lost their parents.

(Photo courtesy of FMI)

Bruce Allen with FMI explains, “Adult bodies are larger. They can get trapped easier. A child’s body can survive in a smaller cavity under the debris perhaps a bit longer. So parents are dying, but kids still may have survived.”

To make matters worse, Allen says, “All the schools have been closed in Turkey right now. Even universities nationwide have suspended classes for weeks. So coming on the heels of the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic when education kind of went out the window, now there’s a generation of children whose education has been severely disrupted for years.”

FMI is helping Turkish Christians get aid to kids and families. They’re providing insulated tents that can shelter a family of four. One insulated tent costs $550 USD. Allen says, “That’s a large stretch for the minority Christian population to handle on their own.”

You can support FMI by giving to their tangible resources fund here.

Besides meeting physical needs, these local believers are able to speak to the fears people face and talk about Jesus.

Allen asks, “Pray for the kids [and] their adjustment, whether it’s because of loss of family or trying to get a grip on life and they’re not being taught things that they need to understand.”

Please pray for the Lord to protect and comfort kids affected by the quake in Turkiye.

Header photo courtesy of Horizons International.