The MSC Group and the MSC Foundation have organized an urgent response to the devastating earthquake in Türkiye and Syria. According to a release 17FEB, the company is closely coordinating with the Turkish authorities, the Italian Foreign Ministry and the Vatican, as well as other foundations and the UN Refugee Agency.
MSC Aurelia, normally used as a passenger and vehicle ferry, departed from the Port of Naples on 16FEB heading for the port of Iskenderun (Alexandretta). The ship was loaded with 60 pallets of medical supplies, food, hygiene items, warm clothing and blankets, as well as toys and crayons for children. An additional 50 boxes of thermal shirts are being carried on behalf of the Vatican.
Once it reaches its destination, the MSC Aurelia will also be available as emergency accommodation, providing the impacted communities with over 1,000 beds and leisure spaces including a restaurant and cinema, as well as video-game entertainment for children.
In addition, in collaboration between the MSC Foundation and the UN Refugee Agency, a further 100 containers carrying first aid supplies (including blankets, mattresses, sleeping bags, kitchen sets, jerry cans and lamps) are departing from Jordan via Haifa, the headquarters of the UN Refugee Agency’s warehouses. The containers will be destined for Gaziantep and other cities hit hardest by the earthquake.
Furthermore, MSC Türkiye has set up temporary accommodation at Iskenderun port using empty containers for 300 MSC Group employees and their families who unfortunately lost their homes in the earthquake disaster. MSC Türkiye is also arranging for the distribution of food, beverages and items to meet basic needs. In the same way, the MSC Group, in cooperation with the Turkish Ministry of Internal Affairs, is carrying and providing thousands of empty containers to four of Türkiye’s hardest-hit provinces to provide temporary shelter for earthquake survivors.
The support of the MSC Group and the MSC Foundation also includes a global fundraising campaign among employees of the group. Every donation by an employee of MSC will be matched by the MSC Foundation and will be used to support organizations working on reconstruction projects in Türkiye and Syria.
“We feel a strong sense of obligation to act promptly in order to support the people most in need by all means. We are a part of a global organization that can set in motion a large-scale operation by involving foundations and associations that we collaborate with all around the world. As soon as the terrible earthquake in Türkiye and Syria struck, we immediately took action to collect funds, supplies and food, which we can deliver on our ships within a short period of time,” said Daniela Picco, Executive Director of the MSC Foundation.
