After the February 6 earthquakes, Izmir Metropolitan Municipality mobilized with all its units to heal the wounds. Providing logistical support for non-governmental organizations to go to the region, the Metropolitan Municipality allocated 274 buses to transport 11 volunteer cyclists to the region with their bicycles.
Izmir Metropolitan Municipality, which mobilized all its units to support earthquake zones, also provided logistical support to non-governmental organizations who wanted to reach the region. 274 buses were allocated to transport 11 volunteers, including search and rescue teams, to Hatay, Adıyaman, Kahramanmaraş, Gaziantep, Osmaniye and Adana, where the earthquake caused great destruction. Providing logistical support to BisiDestek, consisting of volunteer cyclists from Izmir, Izmir Metropolitan Municipality carried the volunteers to the region. Volunteers on bicycles played an active role by organizing quickly from delivering hot food to the earthquake victims, distributing medicine, setting up tents and meeting different needs.
BisiDestek team member Mustafa Karakuş, who stated that they are in cooperation with completely voluntary solidarity from different professions, said, “Everyone rolled up their sleeves to help due to the great disaster. So we decided to do the best we could and set off. We would like to thank Izmir Metropolitan Municipality for bringing us to the region during this process. They allocated us a suitable vehicle for our bikes. We responded to different needs, from setting up tents to carrying generators, from distributing hot meals to earthquake victims, to delivering medicine and medical supplies, by bicycle.”
Our work continues
Stating that they have become a social enterprise organized in different cities of Turkey after the Izmir earthquake, Karakuş said, “We are a team that has mastered the use of many devices and equipment such as headlamps, radios, search and rescue equipment. We are still working in the regions. The needs are very diverse. Some have lost their mobile phones, we find them and bring them to them. Sometimes we carry a generator. Hot food delivery with thermal bags requires speed at such moments, and we have the ability to do it very quickly with bicycles. We are constantly receiving calls to our Whatsapp group," he said.