Canada deploys military assessment team to Turkiye after earthquake
Canada deployed a disaster assessment team to Turkiye on Wednesday in the wake of a devastating earthquake that's killed thousands, as the federal government faced criticism that the window to help with rescue efforts was closing.
International Development Minister Harjit Sajjan announced the deployment of the Canadian Disaster Assessment Team on Wednesday evening and said it consisted of military and Global Affairs officials.
A senior government official who spoke on background ahead of Sajjan's confirmation underscored that the deployment of the team does not automatically guarantee a further deployment of Canadian resources to the country.
The 7.8 magnitude earthquake, which razed thousands of buildings in Turkiye and Syria on Monday, killed nearly 12,000 people and wounded thousands of others.
On Wednesday, Canada's Turkish and Syrian communities were among those who warned that time was running out as local organizations sent teams abroad to assist with search and rescue efforts. Rescue workers from British Columbia were deployed in the quake zone early Thursday morning local time.
Sima Acan, president of the Federation of Canadian Turkish Associations, said it's "very sad" that the Canadian government has not yet committed to sending any search and rescue teams abroad.
"Just hearing that Canada is ready to help but not doing any help and it's been over 60 hours (since the earthquake), it is very upsetting," said Acan, who spoke to The Canadian Press from Istanbul.
Acan said she is concerned that it is already too late for most of those still trapped under buildings.
"Probably we lost the majority of those people who were under those big tons of heavy blocks and every minute counts," she said. "We are losing them."
Marwa Khobieh, executive director of the Syrian Canadian Foundation, said she was "disappointed" with the federal government's response to the disaster.
"By the hour, we're losing hundreds of people, and the more we wait, I would say, the worse the situation is," she said.
Rahul Singh, executive director of Toronto-based humanitarian aid organization GlobalMedic, said the absence of an official team to support relief efforts on the ground indicates that Canada is not doing enough to respond. The group's own teams were en route to Turkiye on Wednesday.
"Canada's response is woefully inadequate and it's just a sign of bad governance. We have very poor government when it comes to foreign policy, and they have a horrific track record when it comes to disaster response," he said.
Canada's response to the disaster has come under fire as search teams from more than two dozen countries have joined tens of thousands of local emergency personnel in Syria and Turkiye.
Experts said the survival window for those trapped under the rubble or otherwise unable to obtain basic necessities was closing rapidly. At the same time, they said it was too soon to abandon hope.
"The first 72 hours are considered to be critical," said Steven Godby, a natural hazards expert at Nottingham Trent University in England. "The survival ratio on average within 24 hours is 74 per cent, after 72 hours it is 22 per cent and by the fifth day it is six per cent."
Ottawa has announced $10 million in aid and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Wednesday that the federal government was still determining how best to help.
"From the very beginning we've been talking with our diplomatic staff, our counterparts over there, working with the international community on getting as much help as needed the right way," he said.
"We are there to help, we're just looking at how to best do it."
Trudeau announced the federal government would match funds donated to Canadian Red Cross relief efforts up to $10 million.
Defence Minister Anita Anand said late Tuesday that the federal government had not ruled out sending a Disaster Assistance Response Team to help with the recovery effort, but that it was working to figure out what would be most useful.
"All options are being considered. And from a defence perspective, we certainly are looking to (DART) as an option," she said.
The Canadian assessment team would recommend whether to send additional support, such as a DART, with a final decision to be made by the federal government.
Meanwhile, Canadian humanitarian aid workers were travelling to Turkiye on Wednesday to help.
Volunteers from B.C.-based Burnaby Urban Search and Rescue, a team that has participated in earthquake rescue operations around the world, arrived in Turkiye late Wednesday, the group announced on social media.
Turkiye's consul general in Vancouver, Taylan Tokmak, told The Canadian Press the team was being deployed in the quake zone early Thursday morning local time.
In Vancouver, donations for those affected by the earthquake poured into a warehouse on Tuesday, but a volunteer organizer said professional search and rescue personnel on the ground in the next 72 hours would make a more immediate impact.
"Time is our enemy at the moment," said Cansoy Gurocak.
----
With files from Lee Berthiaume, Darryl Greer and The Associated Press. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 8, 2023
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
How many COVID-19 vaccine doses should you have by now?
Here is a summary of the current COVID-19 vaccination guidelines from NACI, for both children and adults who are at increased risk of serious illness and those who are not.

Victims identified as police reveal Nashville school shooter had drawn maps, done surveillance
The suspect in a Nashville school shooting on Monday had drawn a detailed map of the school, including potential entry points, and conducted surveillance before killing three students and three adults in the latest in a series of mass shootings in a country growing increasingly unnerved by bloodshed in schools.
From silicon to brain cells: How biology may hold the future of computers
As artificial intelligence software and advanced computers revolutionize modern technology, some researchers see a future where computer programmers leap from silicon to organic molecules.
Freeland's budget to include grocery rebate for lower income Canadians, here's what else to expect Tuesday
The 2023 federal budget will include a one-time 'grocery rebate' for Canadians with lower incomes who may be struggling with the rising cost of food, CTV News has confirmed.
Gender-affirming care bans expanding, access being cut: U.S. laws now targeting transgender adults
In some U.S. states, proponents of gender-affirming care bans have argued for the last few years that minors are too young to make these medical decisions — but in 2023, legislative attempts to limit the health-care options for transgender youth have expanded to a new age group: adults.
Getting an extra consultation before surgery might not give you a better outcome: Canadian study
A new study that looked at more than 300,000 patients found that a medical consultation prior to a routine surgery wasn’t connected to a better surgical outcome, suggesting these consultations might not be necessary.
Quebec girl, 9, dies after snow fort collapses behind residence
A nine-year-old girl has died after a snow fort collapsed in a forest behind a rural Quebec home.
Gwyneth Paltrow accuser calls Utah ski crash 'serious smack'
The man suing Gwyneth Paltrow over a 2016 skiing collision at one of the most upscale resorts in North America took the stand Monday, saying he was rammed into from behind and sent 'absolutely flying.' The trial in Utah hinges on who crashed into who.
'It's horrific': Calgary house explosion injures 10 people
The Calgary Fire Department says at least 10 people were injured in a 'sudden and devastating' explosion in the city's northeast on Monday that completely destroyed one home.
W5 HIGHLIGHTS
W5 Investigates | 'Canadians should be very concerned about their drinking water': W5 investigates asbestos cement pipes
W5 investigates aging asbestos pipes across Canada and the potential health hazards if it ends up in your tap water. Watch W5's 'Something in the Water' on CTVNews.ca and W5's official YouTube channel.

Interactive | Map: Where are the asbestos cement pipes delivering drinking water in Canada?
W5 investigates aging asbestos pipes across Canada and the potential health hazards if it ends up in your tap water. An interactive map and chart on W5.CTVNews.ca shows where in Canada these asbestos cement pipes are being used.

W5 | Comedian Russell Peters doesn't pull punches in climate of 'cancel culture,' 'political correctness'
CTV W5 speaks with members of the comedy industry, including Russell Peters, for a wide-ranging look at how political correctness and 'cancel culture' has changed the world of stand-up comedy.

W5 EXCLUSIVE | New police force should be appointed to take over investigation into death of teenaged hockey player, complaint says
An Ontario couple has filed a request with the Office of the Independent Police Review Director (OIPRD) to appoint a new police force to investigate the death of their 17-year-old son Benjamin, who died during a hockey team-bonding event in September 2019.
W5 Investigates | How did a healthy teen die at a minor hockey camp?
The parents of young Ontario hockey player Ben Teague have been searching for answers since he died while at a team retreat in 2019. The mystery about what happened and the code of silence in hockey culture is explored in CTV W5's 'What Happened to Ben,' on CTVNews.ca and W5's official YouTube channel.
W5 | Parents of young player who died struggle to find answers within hockey's code of silence
The parents of young Ontario hockey player Ben Teague have been searching for answers since he died while at a team retreat in 2019. The mystery about what happened and the code of silence in hockey culture is explored in 'What Happened to Ben' on CTV W5.
W5 | 'So disturbing': Pivot Airlines crew shocked RCMP aware of possible cocaine shipment prior to Dominican bust
The RCMP knew about a potential cocaine shipment from the Dominican Republic to Toronto aboard a Canadian charter flight but inexplicably allowed the crew that discovered and reported the drugs to be detained for months without intervening, a W5 investigation has revealed.
W5 Investigates | Pivot Airlines crew seeking justice after 'cocaine cargo' detainment
CTV W5 investigates what authorities knew about plans to smuggle cocaine out of the Dominican Republic on a Toronto-bound Pivot Airlines flight. The airline's crew is demanding justice following their eight-month detention.