MSC Cruises joins earthquake relief efforts in Turkey and Syria

MSC Aurelia carried 60 pallets of medical supplies, food, clothing and blankets for earthquake survivors

The MSC Group and the MSC Foundation is contributing to aid efforts following the earthquake in Turkey and Syria.

Departing from the port of Naples, the MSC Aurelia was loaded with basic necessities and first aid items that the MSC Group and the MSC Foundation have collected together with the Rava Foundation. 

The cargo on board included 60 pallets of medical supplies, food, hygiene items, warm clothing and blankets, as well as toys and crayons for children. Additionally,  50 boxes of thermal shirts are being carried on behalf of the Vatican.

When it arrived in Turkey, the MSC Aurelia served as emergency accommodation, providing those impacted by the earthquake with more than 1,000 beds as well as a restaurant, cinema and a video-game entertainment for children.

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MSC Foundation executive director  Daniela Picco said: “We feel a strong sense of obligation to act promptly in order to support the people most in need by all means. We are a part of a global organisation that can set in motion a large-scale operation by involving foundations and associations that we collaborate with all around the world.

“As soon as the terrible earthquake in Turkey and Syria struck, we immediately took action to collect funds, supplies and food, which we can deliver on our ships within a short period of time. This is where the valuable collaboration with the Francesca Rava Foundation comes in, which we thank for immediately joining this initiative.”

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The MSC Foundation is also collaborating with the UN Refugee Agency to ship an additional 100 containers carrying first aid supplies including blankets, mattresses, sleeping bags, kitchen sets, jerry cans and lamps from Jordan via Haifa, the headquarters of the UN Refugee Agency’s warehouses. The items will be sent to Gaziantep and other cities that were hit the hardest by the earthquake.

For more information, visit www.msccruises.com