Zein Almoghraby ran outside his hotel room in southeast Turkiye when the building began shaking early Monday morning.
Once he stepped into the hallway, the Toronto resident saw people running frantically down the stairs.
Almoghraby, who is the director of international programs at Journalists for Human Rights, was on assignment with a Canadian colleague to train Syrian refugee journalists when the earthquake hit. Some buildings near where he is sheltering have collapsed, he said, while others that are still standing have been so badly damaged they are no longer safe to seek refuge in.“The most heartbreaking part is that any building that is collapsed, there are civilians standing close to the rescue teams, and those civilians are the families of the people under the rubbles," he said.
In Syria, meanwhile, aid efforts have been hampered by the ongoing war and the isolation of the rebel-held region along the border, which is surrounded by Russia-backed government forces. In an interview late Tuesday, Defence Minister Anita Anand said the federal government has not ruled out sending a Disaster Assistance Response Team, or DART, to help with the recovery effort.
“We're focused right now on trying to rescue and search who are stuck in the rubble as well as to provide some life-saving assistance to those who are now homeless and, in the streets," she said.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Firefighters investigating after large sinkhole found under school bus in Toronto - Toronto | Globalnews.caToronto fire told Global News the sinkhole was located at around 4:36 p.m., on Monday in the Balsam Avenue and Queen Street East area.
Read more »
‘It was a chaotic situation’: Toronto man stuck in Turkey recounts earthquakeToronto man recalls chaotic scene in Turkey as earthquakes hit
Read more »
Calls grow to declare Toronto homelessness a public health crisis after extreme cold | CBC NewsCouncillors in Toronto are set to consider keeping warming centres open 24-7 for the rest of the winter amid growing calls for homelessness to be declared a public health crisis in the city.
Read more »
This is what Toronto's oldest continuously inhabited home looks like insideOne of Toronto's oldest houses, built in the late 1700s or early 1800s, has the distinction of being the oldest continuously inhabited residence in...
Read more »
This Toronto ravine and park are home to a hidden TTC exit and a massive reservoirNordheimer Ravine and Sir Winston Churchill Park in the affluent neighbourhood of South Hill leave so much to be explored. The green spaces are hom...
Read more »