Azerbaijan sends nearly 6,000 tents to Turkiye's quake-hit regions - Ambassador Cahit Bagci

A total of 5,624 tents have been dispatched from Azerbaijan for the earthquake victims in Türkiye to this date, Azernews reports, citing Ambassador Cahit Bagci telling a news briefing.

According to him, around 25,000 blankets, 401 tons of medical supplies, 6,240 heaters, and 737 tons of food were dispatched to Turkiye from Azerbaijan.

"In total, 1,541 tons of humanitarian aid have been sent from the country to the disaster area," the ambassador elaborated.

He also added that Azerbaijan sent a plane to quake-hit areas less than six hours after the disaster, without waiting for a call for help from the international community.

"On the same day, three more planes with humanitarian aid were sent. Everyone who could help with something brought aid to the collection points in Baku," the ambassador stressed.

The diplomat also added that clothes are no longer on the list of urgent needs and shouldn't be sent any longer.

According to Bagci, the greatest need so far remains for tents, heaters, and blankets.

The European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre reports that on January 6, a 7.4-magnitude earthquake hit central Turkiye. The epicenter of the earthquake was 26 kilometers off Gaziantep with a population of about 1.06 million. The earthquake's epicenter was located 7 km below the surface. According to Turkiye's Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD), three more earthquakes with magnitudes of 6.4 to 6.6 shook the province of Gaziantep in southeastern Turkiye.

At the time of writing, the death toll in Turkiye was 31,974.

Azerbaijan was the first country to provide assistance to Turkiye immediately after the earthquake.

The Ministry of Emergency Situations is continuing to send humanitarian aid and rescuers to Turkiye.