After a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck parts of Turkey and Syria this week, Middle Tennesseans with connections to the region are organizing relief efforts.

Mehmet Ayaz’s hometown is about 70 miles from the epicenter of the quake in Turkey. He said his family left their home after watching their neighbors’ buildings collapse.

“They’re afraid to go back,” Ayaz said. “So they went to a factory actually … They’re all sleeping there now.”

From Nashville, Ayaz has spent the last couple of days fundraising and coordinating support for victims.

Rather than collect supplies like blankets and hygiene kits, local organizers are asking people to donate money. That’s partially for efficiency. But MTSU professor Saleh Sbenaty says it’s also because of the ongoing war in Syria.

“Relief efforts, it’s really hard to get to those places where they’re mostly affected,” said Sbenaty.

Sbenaty, who’s Syrian American, says it can be dangerous to transport goods across the country, which is held by a variety of political factions.

He advises that folks donate money to humanitarian groups already on the ground in Turkey and Syria.

Websites like Charity Navigator help people ensure that charities are legitimate before they give. Below are some of the humanitarian organizations offering support to earthquake victims:

• Doctors Without Borders is responding to the disaster with teams in Gaziantep, Turkey, and Northwestern Syria. The organization helps staff and equip hospitals which are currently flooded with injured patients.
• The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies is seeking funding to support relief groups on the ground in Syria and Turkey. According to a press release, the Turkish Red Crescent is providing warm meals, blankets and tents to victims. The Syrian Arab Red Crescent is continuing search and rescue operations and transporting the injured to hospitals.
• Life for Relief and Development is on the ground in the affected region distributing food, blankets, medicines and other supplies.
• Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS) Foundation has been offering medical care around the clock to earthquake victims. According to its website, the charity operates dozens of facilities in Northwestern Syria, as well as a regional office near the earthquake’s epicenter in Turkey.