Oldham ‘running man’ appeals for donations after earthquake

Workers from the charity Global Relief Trust (GRT) had been visiting Gaziantep in Turkey at the time of the earthquake – an area affected heavily by the catastrophe.

One of the charity’s partners based on the ground in Turkey has died.

The death toll from the earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria rose to more than 20,000 as more bodies were pulled from the rubble of collapsed homes in the stricken zone, Turkey’s disaster management agency said.

Rescue workers continued to pull living people from the damaged homes, but hope was starting to fade amid freezing temperatures more than three full days since the quake hit.

A video from Global Relief Trust’s Abdullhayy Salloo shows some of the devastation.

Mr Salloo said: “People are just stuck under there, people are still alive – you can hear them. There’s a little baby, a little child – you can hear them. But there’s so many more, this is just one area, there are so many buildings that have collapsed, Allahu Akbar.”

Oldhamer Afruz Miah works closely with the charity Global Relief Trust.

Speaking to The Oldham Times, Afruz, who is in the UK, said: “It’s a normal thing to work in those regions.

Rubble and collapsed buildings (Image: Global Relief Trust)

“On the morning of the incident at about 4.30 the UK team felt the earthquake from their hotel so they were requested to leave their hotel room and get out of the hotel.

“Our guys were there, on the ground in Gaziantep. Six or seven of them flew out last Thursday (February 2) to deliver aid for winter and pre-Ramadan aid to the refugees in the area.

“They’ve seen bodies over bodies, buildings collapsing, people screaming under the rubble.

“It’s happened so quick there’s no machinery to get them out, people are there using their hands to get them out. They weren’t prepared, there was no preparation for this to happen.

Map of Turkey earthquakes (Image: PA)

“People are in shock, but to see it in real life. My head of development Atiqur Rahman who is on the ground says it’s the worst thing he’s seen so far after 12 years of charity work.

“The UK team are OK, but we also have partners on the ground. We’ve lost our HR person on the ground, his family were buried under the rubble – they couldn’t get out.”

The Global Relief Trust is now appealing for donations, with £10 being enough for blankets, £40 for clothing, and £60 for a food parcel.

Those wishing to donate can do so on Givebrite.