November 7
Amazon partners with local charities to build ‘Smiling Dreams Community House’ to help quake-affected communities
Amazon and local charity partners have announced the opening of the “Smiling Dreams Community House” in the Antakya district of Türkiye’s Hatay province. The area sustained heavy damage when earthquakes hit Türkiye and Syria in February. This project, launched in cooperation with Be A Partner to My Dream Community, a local charity, and the Civil Area Action Network (SAHA) in Hatay province will support people living in the area.
Amazon volunteers in Türkiye will help provide STEM education for children, and local charity partners will provide therapy and psychosocial support for people of all ages. The goal is to contribute to the post-trauma recovery of individuals affected by the disaster in February. This is a continuation of Amazon’s relief efforts, which started within days of the quakes.
The Smiling Dreams Community House was built by Hatay-based contractors with natural building materials that provide high thermal insulation. The modular wooden structure was designed to maximize passive air conditioning principles.
June 16
Amazon ‘Away Team’ helps expedite delivery of essential items to Türkiye earthquake region
A group of Amazon employees, known internally as the “Away Team,” traveled to the region where devastating earthquakes hit Türkiye and Syria in early February, killing over 50,000 people.
The group of highly skilled operations professionals from the Istanbul Fulfillment Center helped expedite the delivery of essential relief items to impacted communities. The volunteer team helped manage a “relief warehouse” to support the logistics and delivery of hundreds of thousands of donated products.
“We put our experience and know-how into use. We are proud that we helped people,” said Esat Işık, Amazon Istanbul Fulfillment Center team co-lead.
As a continuation of Amazon’s support to those affected by the quakes, the Amazon volunteers spent four weeks on the ground providing assistance to earthquake victims.
“Being part of such a team and helping people in my country is truly a memorable moment,” said Tekin Aydın, Amazon Istanbul Fulfillment Center team co-lead and "Away Team" member.
February 27
Amazon Air sends planes to deliver relief supplies to Türkiye and Syria
Two Amazon Air cargo planes loaded with relief supplies flew to Istanbul from the U.S. and Germany over the weekend to deliver aid to earthquake response in Türkiye and Syria.
The planes delivered tents, sleeping bags, blankets, heaters, and other much-needed supplies. Amazon teams across Europe and the U.S. packed and loaded hundreds of pallets with supplies, totaling more than 100,000 pounds of items. Relying on teams and facilities in both regions allows Amazon to more efficiently move goods thanks to a wider available inventory.
The Amazon-donated products will support the ongoing humanitarian response through partner organizations like the International Organization for Migration (IOM), ensuring that the supplies will be delivered to families who have lost their homes in the affected areas. The work is being done in close coordination with the Government of Türkiye and through implementing partners in northwest Syria.
IOM’s response in the two countries builds on existing expertise in disaster relief, with more than 1,000 staff in Türkiye, 600 of whom are based in the affected areas in southeast Türkiye, and large-scale, cross-border operations in northwest Syria that run from the Turkish city of Gaziantep. More than 1 million people have been reached with immediate relief assistance, and 422 trucks worth of aid have been dispatched in the two countries, with support from national partners in Türkiye and through implementing partners in northwest Syria.
The work is a continuation of Amazon’s efforts in the region. Just days after the devastating earthquake, Amazon sent tens of thousands of relief items to the impacted areas and established a Disaster Relief Hub near Istanbul within four days.
Amazon also made an initial commitment of $600,000 in total cash donations to non-governmental organizations providing critical support. To help customers easily donate to organizations providing help on the ground, the company activated donation campaigns on 16 Amazon stores around the world.
According to officials, more than 48,000 people lost their lives in the earthquake and survivors are struggling with cold weather.
AWS and cloud technology partners rally to help after earthquakes
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is providing technical support to local organizations that are helping with relief efforts following the devastating earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria.
AWS quickly worked with its local cloud technology partners VNGRS and Skyloop Cloud to help AFAD, a Turkish governmental disaster management agency, by developing software powered by artificial intelligence (AI) to coordinate incoming calls for help.
This digital solution enabled faster response to rescue alerts, which were passed on to search and rescue teams. With this software, the data from incoming calls was digitized through speech-to-text technology to quickly gain actionable insights from customer conversations, including the type of assistance needed. This software is now integrated into AFAD’s IT system.
Within days of the February 6 earthquake, AWS also helped AKUT Search and Rescue Association scale their app Güvendeyim (which translates to “I am Safe” in English) to help local residents notify loved ones that they were safe. The app now has over 1 million downloads.
Turkish tech customer Başarsoft received technical support from AWS to create the Earthquake Assistance Needs Mapping Portal. The portal uses location-based social media posts to help direct search efforts to critical areas, such as collapsed buildings and rubble. The app also helps locate people in need of assistance and allows anyone to submit aid requests.
Tech professionals also came together using a chat room to help launch another mapping effort supported by AWS, Afetharita.com, which translates to “disaster map.” The app uses AI to create a map showing requests for help posted through social media.
February 10
Amazon establishes Türkiye Disaster Relief Hub to expedite relief
Amazon has created the Türkiye Disaster Relief Hub near Istanbul to quickly provide relief items to areas impacted by the recent earthquake in Türkiye and Syria.
Working with one of Amazon’s local logistics partners, the company has so far converted 2,000 square meters (nearly 21,530 square feet) of warehouse space into a facility that will help move critical supplies to front-line organizations. This facility—set up just four days after the devasting earthquake—will help Amazon expedite the delivery of essential relief items. The company and Amazon customers have donated nearly 100,000 relief items so far, and donations continue to come in.
Teams working at the Türkiye Disaster Relief Hub will handle those donations and other critical supplies, including heaters, blankets, shelter materials, and clothing, in close coordination with local authorities and nonprofits on the ground. The facility was established near Istanbul to improve the arrangement and shipment of relief supplies and quickly help people in impacted areas.
The first four truckloads of Amazon’s donated relief items departed Amazon’s fulfilment center in Istanbul earlier this week to Hatay and Malatya provinces. The first truckload carrying customer donations departed Thursday to Kahramanmaraş Province.
February 9
Amazon helps customers in more countries donate to help earthquake victims
Amazon is helping customers contribute directly to organizations supporting earthquake relief in Türkiye and Syria. Customers in the United States, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, the United Arab Emirates, and a growing number of countries can now visit their local sites and donate to organizations like the Red Cross and Red Crescent. Amazon customers in Türkiye can visit the Amazon Türkiye country page to stay up to date on ways to donate and contribute.
Amazon is also providing technology support to organizations responding to the tragedy. The Amazon Web Services Disaster Preparedness and Response team is providing trained technical volunteers and technical solutions to Help.NGO, a United Nations standby partner assisting in the region. So far, Amazon has also provided cash grants to nonprofits on the ground and is using its logistic infrastructure to send relief items to impacted areas.
Officials say the death toll has climbed above 20,000, and cold weather now covers Türkiye and Syria. Amazon has already shipped donated blankets, tents, heaters, food, diapers, baby food, medicine, and other emergency items, and Amazon’s Disaster Relief team continues to field requests for winter survival equipment, clothing, hygiene products, and other items.
February 8
Amazon provides cash donations to non-governmental organizations helping with relief efforts in Türkiye and Syria
Amazon has announced an initial commitment of $600,000 in total cash donations to non-governmental organizations providing critical support in areas affected by the earthquake in Türkiye and Syria.
The organizations include Red Crescent of Türkiye, AKUT (Search and Rescue Association), the AHBAP foundation, Emirates Red Crescent, World Food Program, Save the Children, and UNICEF. Amazon’s commitment is in addition to the product donations and logistics support that the company is already providing in the region. The first two truckloads of Amazon’s donated relief items departed the company’s fulfillment center in Istanbul on Tuesday, February 7, for Hatay Province. Additional trucks are scheduled to depart in the next few days to Hatay and Malatya provinces. Amazon stands with communities in the regions affected by the devastating earthquake. Amazon teams in Türkiye are closely working with local authorities and nonprofits on the ground to provide relief.
February 7
First shipment of Amazon relief items leaves Istanbul for areas affected by earthquake
A day after the devastating earthquake in Türkiye, the first truckload of Amazon’s donated relief items departed the company’s fulfillment center in Istanbul.
The supplies are heading to Hatay Province and include heaters, blankets, and other goods to aide first responders and help victims stay warm amid frigid weather. Rescue operations are ongoing following the Monday morning earthquake, which officials say killed over 7,700 people.
Amazon customers can help by donating through a new donations page on Amazon’s Türkiye store. Within three hours of the page going live on Tuesday, customers had donated more than 5,000 items to help earthquake victims.
As of Tuesday morning, all of Amazon’s nearly 2,000 workers in Türkiye were safe and accounted for. We continue to be in contact with organizations on the ground and the Turkish government to learn more about what’s needed in areas impacted by the earthquake, and we will work with partners to deliver relief items and logistical support.
February 6
Just after 4 a.m. local time on Monday, February 6, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck Türkiye and the surrounding region, causing widespread devastation. Local authorities have confirmed at least 2,600 deaths and expect the figure to increase as search and rescue efforts continue.
To assist impacted communities, Amazon has activated its disaster relief capabilities and is responding to help meet the immediate needs of the Red Crescent and other relief organizations. We are preparing to ship donated relief items from our fulfillment center in Istanbul to affected areas. Our donations will include items such as blankets, tents, heaters, food, diapers, baby food, medicine, and other emergency items as victims face not only the damage from the earthquake but frigid winter weather.
We expect the first truckloads to depart on Wednesday.
“This immediate delivery is just the beginning of Amazon’s response,” said Abe Diaz, head of Amazon’s Disaster Relief program. “Over the coming days, we’ll work with local organizations and disaster-relief groups to identify on-the-ground needs and use Amazon’s logistics and delivery network to meet them.”
Amazon has nearly 2,000 workers in Türkiye and no facilities in the impacted areas. Our local leaders spent the day Monday ensuring that staff and their families were safe and accounted for. We are committed to continue leveraging our infrastructure, inventory, and teams to provide the relief that’s needed.
Read more about Disaster Relief by Amazon.
