Small West Cork pub becomes humanitarian aid hub to support earthquake relief
Jo Lyons and Alper Kanburog sorting through clothes at Hackett's Bar, Schull, at the collection for the earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria. Picture: Denis Boyle
From a friendly local pub to a humanitarian aid hub — a small pub in West Cork is playing a key role in the delivery of vital aid to the survivors of the devastating earthquake which struck Turkey and Syria this week.
Alper Kanburoglu and his partner, Joanne Lyons, spent yesterday in Alper’s family bar, Hackett’s in Schull, sorting their way through a mountain of aid that has flooded in from people across the region in recent days.
“The response has been overwhelming really,” Alper said.
That response has been replicated in towns and cities across the country as Turkish people who have made Ireland home have mounted a massive and coordinated aid gathering operation, in association with the Turkish Embassy in Dublin, to ensure that vital supplies get to the survivors of the disaster soon.
Alper's father, Tezcan, is Turkish. Alper used to work in Turkish Airlines’ marketing department. His mother, Sue, took over Hackett’s bar from her mother in the 1980s.
When the family saw the devastating scenes after the quake, they knew they had to do something to help and now the bar has become an unofficial humanitarian aid hub.
“We thought we’d get a car full of aid, maybe, but now we have at least two vans, and we may fill another one or two. People have been just so amazing,” Alper said.
“The biggest thing we’ve noticed is how helpful the community has been, we couldn’t ask for anything more.”
Local people, schools, and businesses responded and dozens of bags and boxes of winter clothes, sleeping bags, tents, baby food, and toiletries, were dropped off at various outlets across the region, including Hairport Barbers in Skibbereen, run by Turkish man Sukru Joe Atalay.
He then transported that aid to Hackett’s for sorting and repacking.
Sukru said: “It got to the stage where we just couldn’t handle the amount of stuff that was being donated. We had to stop taking items and ask people to donate to the Red Cross.
“I have family in the west of Turkey, thankfully away from the earthquake zone, and I just can’t explain to them how kind Irish people have been.
“There are millions of people who survived the earthquake who need to be clothed and fed. It’s a major challenge.”
In Cork city, Firat Uygun, from Hatay but living in Douglas, got involved in gathering aid after his aunts, uncles, and cousins lost their homes in the earthquake, while businessman Evren Ertugrul, who own the Nosta Restaurant on Marlborough St, is also among those working to collect aid locally.
“People are out on the streets now, and it can get really, really cold in Turkey, especially at this time of year. It is freezing temperatures. We are hearing that people are dying because of the cold,” he said.
All of the aid will be transported by road to the Turkish Embassy, which is working with Turkish Airlines to ship it free of charge to Turkey.
The designated drop-off point in Cork is at 4 Drinan St, ICOT English College, Ballintemple, up to 5pm on Saturday. Donations can also be made to Nosta Restaurant.
Donations can also be made online to the Turkish Red Cross at https://www.kizilay.org.tr/
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