Two earthquakes measuring 7.7 took place on 6 February 2023 at 04:17 in Pazarcık district of Kahramanmaraş and a 7.6 took place at 13:24 in Elbistan district of Kahramanmaraş. It was felt intensely in the surrounding provinces, especially in Kahramanmaraş, Hatay, Osmaniye, Adıyaman, Gaziantep, Şanlıurfa, Diyarbakır, Malatya, Kilis and Adana. There have been over 17.000 deaths and over 70.000 injured people so far. It is feared that this number will increase 10-15 times according to current calculations. The number of people who are trapped is not known. Turkish State institutions, Private organizations and the people of Turkiye are working around the clock to provide help. Aid teams from 60 countries arrived within the first 24 hours. We thank them all.

Many here in the US and in Europe have been in contact asking how they can assist. Specifically, how can they help in the rural areas devastated and low priority at this time.

To meet this need The Society for the Perpetuation of the Desert Bred Saluki has set up a PayPal fund to cover the following:

We have reliable help in the area who will hire a large truck, this is needed to transport the list of needed items below as well as dog food.  This list is from the Ministry of Interior Disaster and Emergency Management and AFAD has requested help from the international community.  By helping the villagers we can also help the Salukis and the Shepherd Dogs who are also in trouble. Rural areas are often the last to get help so we will go to the small villages outside cities where there is great need.  Our contact is well known in all these areas.  These villages are the homes to our Salukis.  The weather is -14 degrees C there right now, people cannot wait.

AFAD’s help list;

1) Electric heater 2) Large and small batteries 3) Wood Stove , wood, coal stove 4) pocket warmer and powerbank, generator,5) children’s (1-5 years) and adults coat, 6) women’s /men’s socks 7) WINTER shoes -women’s /men’s fleece,9) women’s men’s underwear, 10) raincoat,poncho ,11) sleeping bag -Pillow, 12) disposable plate cutlery, pan, kettle 13) Roasted Kidney Beans,Cheese ,Canned , 14) tea, coffee, cheddar, olives, cheese 15) water, bread, ready to go food.

ALL funds raised will go directly to the villages.  At the end of this campaign a full accounting of how all funds have been dispersed will be available.