Emergency Aid totaling US$1,000,000 to the Republic of Turkey for the Earthquake Disaster Relief

August 18, 1999

On August 18, the Government of Japan decided to extend emergency grant assistance of US$600,000 and emergency material aid equivalent to a total of US$400,000 comprising tents, blankets, generators, sleeping mats, plastic sheets and water tanks.
The emergency grant assistance and material aid announced today are to be extended in addition to the dispatch of disaster relief missions that the Japanese Government decided yesterday, i.e. the first group of the rescue team (20 members) which has already arrived in Istanbul, the second group (17 members) due to arrive at 23:20 local time on August 18, and the medical team (16 members) due to arrive at 14:20 local time on August 19.
Around 3:00 am local time on August 17, an earthquake registering around seven on the Richter Scale hit the northwestern part of Turkey (the seismic center was located near the city of Izmit, which is situated 110 km to the east of Istanbul). The earthquake caused a large number of casualties and material damages such as collapse of buildings in the wide area of the northwestern region. At the moment, local reports indicate that more than 2,000 were killed and more than 10,000 injured.
While conducting relief operations of its own, the Turkish Government had asked for further emergency assistance from the Japanese Government.

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