Turkish disaster response teams – trained by Baptist Global Response – are responding well in the aftermath of a magnitude 6 earthquake that struck eastern Turkey at 4:32 a.m. March 8.

“BGR has trained disaster response teams in Turkey. I am in contact with them,” said Francis Horton, who, with his wife, Angie, directs BGR work in Central and South Asia. “They are determining the needs. Turkey’s government is handling the situation very well. They have not asked for inernational help.”

Fifty-one people died in the tremor, which shattered the mud-brick homes common in poor villages. Because many families keep their livestock on the ground floor of their houses – to keep them warm during the harsh winters – hundreds of animals also died in the quake. The loss of livestock will mean great hardship to families in the area.

Survivors took shelter in tents delivered by the military and crowded around bonfires to keep warm, according to news reports. The army also was delivering food supplies in the area.