Feedback from my Turkish friends about the situation:
2 earthquakes of this magnitude close to each other in space and time is extremely rika. The aftershocks that followed were also strong. The aftershocks thinned out and then stopped, unlike the usual pattern. This leads to the conclusion that an even stronger quake is to be expected.
12 major cities were affected. They are also difficult to reach. In many cases, the cities' airfields were built on loose soil in parched areas that have now been destroyed, so air access is also severely limited.
The devastation is elementary, so far we are talking about 12,000 people, but my Turkish contacts say that should be multiplied by at least 2, so we are talking about at least 25,000+ dead.
The disaster is compounded by Erdogan's refusal to allow the appropriate units of the military to move in, who would also have a general role in rescuing civilians. Government buildings are also in ruins in many places. In many places it is -10 degrees and people are simply freezing. There is a huge supply problem, we are talking about 12 to 15 million people in the affected area. We have people we know who are sleeping in cars and heating them as best they can.
It is a serious blow to the people that Erdogan, in his madness, has previously dismantled the disaster management organisation, which has a tradition of about 100 years, and then dismantled other organisations that were formed later, and the leaders are glad that they have not been put in prison. Instead of these organisations, only the state organisation founded by Erdogan can appear, as if to promote him, the Almighty.
Many Turkish business organisations also send truckloads of aid. These trucks are all being maintained, the logos of the companies and donors are being taken down and replaced by the logos of Erdogan's state organisation.
The situation is very serious, and Erdogan is, as you would expect, doing damage control for his own situation and also somehow wanting to turn the situation to his advantage.
I have not started to look for the names of these "organisations", my aim is not to write some very precise report. I just thought I would share with you what I have just heard, it also colours the picture we are getting of the situation.