Emory students raise money for Turkey as earthquake death toll rises to 28,000

ATLANTA - The death toll in Turkey and Syria has climbed to over 28,000 after a 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck the region on Monday. FOX 5’s Kim Leoffler spoke with Turkish college students who were doing what they could locally to help abroad.  

Those students admitted they had friends and family members who lost their lives in the aftermath of this earthquake. They said help will likely be needed in those areas for a very long time.  

"I had no words to say. I didn’t know what to do," said Elif Gencer.

Emory University

The news of the earthquake in Turkey hit close to home for Emory University students Elif Gencer and Ilayda Baykan. They are both from Istanbul.

"I checked social media to see if anyone was affected," Gencer told FOX 5, "and then I stayed up all night and I kept hearing stories of friends who were found dead." 

"Honestly, I reached out to as many people as I could back home," Baykan said, "and it’s just very sad." 

Gencer sent FOX 5 photos that she said her uncle took on Thursday. Gencer said her uncle is part of a rescue team digging through the rubble for survivors.

The 7.8 earthquake in the southeastern part of the country led to hundreds of aftershocks. The strongest was recorded at a magnitude of 7.5.  

As the death toll continues to climb, tens of thousands of people have been injured and millions have been displaced.

Two Turkish students and a Turkish professor began a fundraiser in order to send funds to those affected by a 7.8-magnitude earthquake that devastated Turkey.

That is exactly what pushed Gencer and Baykan to join forces with a Turkish professor to raise money to send to people in need. 

"We are trying to do the best we can from afar to help the best we can because their pain is our pain," Baykan said.

The president of Turkey called the earthquake one of the greatest disasters in their history.

"So far, we’ve managed to raise $3000 in less than 48 hours, but this is very small compared to the magnitude that happened in Turkey," Gencer said. "I cannot emphasize how much donations matter, and how much it matters for everyone to be in solidarity to recognize the magnitude of this catastrophe."