Turkey to donate 90 tons of aid to typhoon hit Philippines

Turkey is expected to send 90 tons of relief supplies to the Philippines, which was hit by Typhoon Haiyan and is struggling to recover amid fears that the death toll may rise, a Turkish official statement said Sunday. The statement issued by the Disaster and Emergency Management Directorate said that as a first step ,Turkey will send 1,000 tents, 8,000 blankets and 1,000 kitchen tools in addition to food aid to the Philippines. Meanwhile, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan sent a message to President Benigno Aquino III, offering his condolences and pledging to deliver support and aid to the disaster-stricken country. Turkey will also send search and rescue teams to the areas where emergency crews are still looking for survivors. "Haiyan," the most powerful typhoon in the Philippines in its history, has brought destruction across the Visayas region and other coastal areas, killing an estimated 10,000 people in Leyte province alone. The deadly typhoon slammed into central Philippines last Friday, with the winds velocity reaching 320 kilometers per hour. Nearly 800,000 Filipinos have evacuated and around 4 million people have been affected.