After the two major earthquakes in Kahramanmaraş, the Disaster Coordination Desk established by UTIKAD, with the support of sectoral NGOs and stakeholders, made great efforts to deliver the aid sent from all over the country to the disaster area. On Monday, February 6, two earthquakes with a magnitude of 7,7 and 7,6 in Kahramanmaraş caused destruction in ten cities and affected the lives of approximately fourteen million people. Members of the Association of International Forwarding and Logistics Service Providers (UTIKAD) take action on the first day of the earthquake and continue to work day and night to deliver aid materials to the disaster area through the Disaster Coordination Desk. UTIKAD President Ayşem Ulusoy said, “The Disaster Coordination Desk brought together important logistics NGOs of the country, officials in public institutions and organizations, municipal employees, managers and employees operating in the logistics sector, and took the first step of a great volunteering movement”. He called for the establishment of the Board.
LOGISTICS OPPORTUNITIES HAVE BEEN MOBILIZED
The Disaster Coordination Desk carried out critical work in the first week of the earthquake. UTIKAD volunteers competed against time to deliver hundreds of TIRs loaded with relief materials, including construction equipment, to the disaster area, by coordinating the transportation needs of those who can provide vehicles and drivers to the region for the delivery of construction equipment to be used in rescue operations.
The procedures regarding the transportation of humanitarian aid from neighboring countries to Turkey were followed through rapidly updated information and announcements, customs processes, vehicle permits, tax and permit exemptions, road situation in the disaster area, operational airports, departure times of ships departing from ports for aid to be delivered by sea. It was presented to the information of the volunteers who wanted to deliver.
by UTIKAD; Coordinated works carried out with AFAD, Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure and AKOM officials ensured the establishment of an effective communication network in the disaster area, enabling the determination of the updated supplies as of the first day of the earthquake. Heavy machinery to be used for rescue works, for which the first seventy-two hours are critical, was dispatched to the region, and it also contributed to the rapid organization of updated necessities such as food, clothing, tents, and heating in the light of information from the region.
UTIKAD also helped the foreign rescue teams who came to Turkey to participate in the rescue efforts after the international call for help by the state authorities to the disaster area. The minute-by-minute flight information for the French rescue team arriving at Adana Airport from France and the equipment they brought with them was updated, and the buses prepared by the Association members were kept ready at the airport to transport the French rescue team to the disaster area.
SEA AND RAILWAYS ARE ALSO COMMISSIONED
Vehicles loaded with aid materials, which were tried to be transported by road, caused traffic congestion on the roads in the disaster area. The negativities experienced on the highway prompted UTIKAD members operating in every mode of the logistics sector to create different alternatives. As a result of the effective work, different transportation routes were put into use, and the aid materials that needed to be delivered to the region were dispatched without slowing down. Members of the association operating in the field of maritime transport organized Ro-Ro expeditions and made efforts to deliver aid materials to the region. As of the second day of the earthquake, the aid materials delivered to the Iskenderun port, thanks to the Ro-Ro expeditions launched from Istanbul and Izmir, were delivered to the official institutions in the disaster area.
UTIKAD ASSISTANCE TRAIN
After the negotiations between UTIKAD and the Railway Transport Association with TCDD, railway services began to be organized as it offered more opportunities in terms of speed and load capacity. With the block train services from Kocaeli Köseköy, kitchen, living container and portable toilets were delivered to the disaster area. UTIKAD Aid Train is about to make its first flight on Monday, February 13, 2023. HalkalıMoved from..
THE NEED FOR LOGISTICS COORDINATION CONTINUES IN THE REGION
While a large number of aid materials continue to be delivered to the disaster area, the logistics coordination for the storage and distribution of the materials delivered to the region continues to maintain its importance in the healing process of the wounds in the disaster area. With the effective use of railway and seaway alternatives, the pressure on the highway should be relieved and the materials brought to the storage areas should be transported at full capacity with appropriate vehicles, and the vehicles reaching the region should be evacuated in a planned and rapid manner and the vehicles should be included in the new cargo planning. While many factors such as the type, size, urgency of the materials to be transported and the characteristics of the region to be transported are effective in logistics coordination, the necessity of responding quickly to the needs arising in disaster situations shows the importance of effective cooperation between public administration units and non-governmental organizations.
DISASTER LOGISTICS COORDINATION BOARD IS VITAL
Underlining that the Disaster Coordination Desk, which they established right after the earthquake, plays an important role in delivering rescue vehicles and aid materials to the region, UTIKAD Chairman of the Board Ayşem Ulusoy said, “Long-term thinking is required in the healing of the wounds of the earthquake-affected areas, and if a similar situation is encountered in the future, effective and fast action must be taken. The establishment of the Disaster Logistics Coordination Board is vital for the said. Saying that for the efforts of the logistics sector, “it was not just a burden that was carried, it was the solidarity and unity of our country”, Ulusoy expressed his gratitude for this great aid movement that brought the whole country together. Reminding that the importance of logistics was experienced painfully both during the pandemic period and the great disaster we experienced, Ayşem Ulusoy announced that they will start working as UTIKAD for the establishment of the Disaster Logistics Coordination Board.
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