Children in the face of natural disasters!

As we do every year, we spent August 17th commemorating the great Marmara earthquake of August 17, 1999, with heavy hearts. Twenty-five years have passed since the Marmara earthquake; since then, there have been devastating earthquakes in Van, Elazığ, and İzmir, and about a year and a half ago, we experienced immense pain with the February 6th disaster. Like everyone else, I asked myself: are we prepared for an earthquake or any other natural disaster? As you might guess, the answers I received were not very encouraging, so I decided to write this article in the hope that it might be of some use.

As you know, our beautiful country, Turkey, unfortunately struggles with problems caused by natural disasters in addition to chronic issues such as the economy, education, unemployment, and terrorism. Earthquakes, floods, and forest fires hurt us and break our hearts. One tragedy ends, and another begins! Before we can fully heal our wounds from an earthquake, we are shaken by forest fires and floods, but it seems we never learn any lessons from these disasters.

In the recent 7.1 magnitude earthquake in Japan, people were able to continue their normal lives as if nothing had happened, but that was not the case for us during and after the February 6th earthquake. Unfortunately, the traces of the earthquake have not yet been completely erased in Antakya, Kahramanmaraş, Malatya, and Adıyaman. The precautions we did not take before the earthquake, the training we did not prioritize, or the issues we ignored have, unfortunately, cost us—and especially our children—very dearly. Because, as in everything else, our children suffered the greatest harm.

Our children, who lost their health, families, loved ones, homes, or schools, experienced great trauma and continue to bear the marks of these pains. At this point, post-disaster support for children becomes of great importance. Professional support and group therapy sessions organized after a disaster help children cope with emotional difficulties and reduce the traces of trauma, but I believe the most important thing is to raise awareness among children and society as a whole about natural disasters.

Knowing what to do during an earthquake, flood, or fire, or knowing what individual precautions we can take before all these disasters occur, is very important. Raising awareness among children about natural disasters, clearly explaining to them how to behave during a disaster, and protecting both their physical safety and mental health should be our primary duty as families and educators.

We can educate our children about disasters and ensure they become aware through various books, animations, riddles, songs, or games. In this regard, Prof. Dr. Naci Görür's Earthquake Book for Children, the Disaster Awareness Training animation prepared by AFAD for children, and the activities in the Ministry of National Education's School-Based Disaster Education Activity Book can be good guides for us. I hope that with the guidance of these resources, we can instill disaster awareness in our children and, especially in light of the recommendations in the Earthquake Book for Children, prevent earthquake phobia at a very early age!