A Pakistani civilian cargo ship carrying 65 containers of aid for earthquake-ravaged Turkiye and Syria set off from Karachi on Thursday, the foreign office said.
More than 52,000 people were killed in Turkiye and Syria in a Feb. 6 earthquake, with many being crushed or buried in their sleep.
Pakistan is among scores of countries that immediately sent search and rescue teams to the friendly nation and has been regularly sending relief goods.
“Today a civil cargo ship carrying 65 containers filled with 1221 tons of relief goods for Quake-hit Turkiye & Syria is sailed off from South Asia Pak Terminal, Karachi,” the foreign office said on Thursday.
“Out of the 65 containers, 41 are carrying 8200 winterized tents for Turkiye and 24 containers carrying 15,000 ration bags making total of 615 tons for Syria.”
The ship will drop off the aid containers to Turkiye by March 23-24 and to Syria by end of March.
“NDMA is spearheading massive relief operations by using all available modes of transportation including Air, Sea and Road.,” the statement said. “In this regard special chartered cargo flights operation will also commence soon, whereas assistance is also being sent using belly space of PIA on regular flights to Turkiye.”
February’s earthquake and aftershocks left at least 156,000 buildings either completely collapsed or damaged to the point where they require demolition, Turkish authorities have said, with whole areas of cities reduced to shattered concrete and steel.
The UN Development Program (UNDP) says the resulting 116- 210 million tons of rubble are equivalent to an area of 100 square km (40 square miles), if it were stacked to a height of 1 meter. That is roughly the size of Barcelona.
