Turkey earthquake: Malawi foreign office searches for affected Malawians

8 Malawians displaced

The Malawi embassy in Berlin is still searching for other Malawians that might have been affected by Mondays Turkey-Syria earthquake.

During the week, it was established that 8 people have been displaced by the earthquake.

Fortunately, no fatalities were reported among the eight Malawians, but they have lost their homes and are currently being sheltered in tents.

According to international media reports, as of Saturday morning, the 7.8 magnitude quake has led to over 24 000 deaths in Turkey and Syria.

It is believed that more people currently still trapped beneath collapsed buildings.

Speaking to Capital FM, spokesperson for the ministry of foreign affairs John Kabaghe disclosed that those affected were studying in Turkey.

He further appealed to the citizenry to inform them in case they have information of some Malawians were living in those countries.

There are fears that the figure might be higher because the exact number of Malawians based there is currently not known.

The local foreign affairs office is now calling on Malawians living in the diaspora to register with Malawi embassies the respective countries of residence for easy assistance in instances of such disasters.

Kabaghe stressed that in times of disasters it becomes difficult to track individuals who have not registered with the embassy.

Meanwhile, search and rescue teams in the two affected countries are still working to find more survivors trapped under the rubble, as well as retrieve bodies of those that did not survive.