A street collection organised by a Manx charity has raised over £17,200 for the Turkey Syria Earthquake Appeal.

The collection was carried out by the One World Centre Isle of Man over two weekends in February, following the earthquakes in the south of Turkey that resulted in nearly 60,000 deaths and millions of people losing their homes.

The Isle of Man Government has also contributed £100,000 from its international development budget to the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC)’s appeal along with a further £100,000 to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Agency, which was already working with refugees in the area.

This was the second highest amount ever raised in a One World Centre street collection, exceeded only by the collection for the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal in 2022.

The DEC passes on the funds to its charity members and local partners who are working in Turkey and Syria to help survivors with shelter, food, clean water and medical assistance.

One World Centre coordinator Wendy Shimmin said: ‘The amount collected by our volunteers on the Isle of Man is amazing, especially given the impact of the current cost of living crisis on people’s pockets.

‘We also know that many people have donated directly to the DEC or through workplace schemes so the total raised on the island is significantly higher.’

The two earthquakes hit the just outside of the city of Gaziantep on February 6 and measured at a magnitude of 7.8 and 7.5 respectively.

At the end of February, a third earthquake of 5.6 magnitude hit the eastern town of Yeşilyurt in Turkey.

Mrs Shimmin continued:‘I think everyone was moved by the pictures we saw on the television and in the newspapers.

‘It’s hard for us to imagine the fear and loss felt by those affected by the earthquake but there was clearly a lot of empathy for those who, in many cases, lost everything as well as loved ones in the disaster.

‘The fact that so many people on the island gave so generously is enormously heartening.’

The DEC Turkey Syria Earthquake Appeal has now raised over £120m in total in the UK which included donations from the King and Queen Consort, the Prince and Princess of Wales, as well as £5 million matched by the UK Government through the UK Aid Match scheme.

Although the street collections in the Isle of Man are now finished, the DEC Turkiye Syria Earthquake Appeal remains open.

Anyone who would like to borrow buckets for a workplace or event collection for the appeal in the island can call the One World Centre Isle of Man on 310191.