(ANS – Alepo) – Nearly 12 years of war, a bomb-ravaged country with only two hours of electricity per day, no fuel for generators, where there is no work, and where prices are unaffordable due to inflation: this was Syria at the time it suffered two devastating earthquakes between Sunday, Feb. 5 and Monday, Feb. 6, both exceeding 7 on the Richter scale. The first brought survivors to the streets in the rain; the second brought down many damaged buildings. In the face of such a scenario, Salesians around the world are taking action, and from Spain, both Misiones Salesianas the Salesian Mission Office of Madrid, and “Bosco Global,” an NGO of the Spain-Mary Help of Christians Province, have been activated.
“During the night the earthquake was very powerful and long, and other tremors were recorded later,” explained Fr. Alejandro León, Superior of the Salesians in the Middle East (MOR). “The first tremor was very strong and lasted a long time,” he continued, “Everyone came out into the streets at dawn, in the rain, with nothing on, and in Aleppo, they came to take refuge at ‘Don Bosco,’ because our house was almost undamaged.” Then, with the second earthquake, “almost 500 people spent the night with us.”
As mentioned, the Salesian work in Aleppo suffered controlled damage with cracks and a few broken windows, but both the Salesians and the people they serve are fine. Families who have left their homes and taken refuge in the Salesian center in Aleppo in search of help are steadily increasing in number. Many of these people’s homes were badly damaged during the war, and in this Salesian home, they find a place where they can feel safe.
The situation is similar in the other two Syrian cities where the Salesians have their centers, in Damascus and Kafroun, where casualties have been lower in number, but where there has also been significant material and infrastructure damage. In Kafroun, in particular, about 150 families took refuge at the Salesian center after suffering severe damage to their homes.
“Twelve years after the beginning of the war in Syria, earthquakes meant that the buildings most damaged by bombs did not hold up,” Fr. León continued. “Many people who had almost nothing now have lost everything and are afraid of what will happen to them.”
These first hours after the earthquake are crucial for finding survivors under the rubble, but also for organizing emergency relief.
Most families have returned to their homes to see what state they are in and if they can take some clothing, but they are very afraid. “The government has also distributed some bread, but we still need everything: mattresses, blankets, warm clothes, food,” the Aleppo Salesians report.
“We have suffered war for many years and then the explosion two and a half years ago in the port of Beirut: everything affects the economy and the population. And now come the earthquakes. All of this is very complicated, but we are not giving up and the Syrian people will remain united and move forward,” the MOR Provincial concludes with courage and hope.
In order to maintain the work of the Salesians in Syria for the families most affected by the earthquake, the Salesians of Spain have also taken action, activating two donation channels by bank transfer, accessible here:
Source: Salesianos.info, Misiones Salesianas