On Sunday a 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck near the city of Van in eastern Turkey. The Turkish authorities, the Red Crescent and many volunteers have faced a huge task but have rescued thousands of people.
The European Commission’s emergency response centre was immediately on alert, ready to coordinate Europe’s contribution to the relief operations if and when Turkey requested it. Today we have been asked to join the response and help care for those whose homes have been destroyed by the quake. Read the full entry
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In my work as Commissioner for crisis response, I often face the type of news that we hope never to face. A month ago I had a moment like this. Japan was hit by one of the strongest earthquakes in history; cities and lives were shredded by the tsunami that followed; and as if that was not enough, the nuclear meltdown cast a shadow of unimaginable danger.
At Kitaibaraki’s port, boats sit atop each other, next to a two-storey-high pile of cars. The clock at the port’s main office has stopped at 14:48, the time the tsunami hit two weeks ago. In this surreal landscape, the Governor of Ibaraki prefecture, Masaro Hashimoto and I are talking to local fishermen. They are eager to see the port brought back to life, but worry about the news from Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant – it is just 70 km from their town, and radiation scare is shutting down the markets for their catch. The fishermen fear that although the rubble will be cleared, the scare will kill their livelihoods. 
I am at Brussels airport with our civil protection team for a last-minute briefing before they take off for Japan. The 14 Europeans in the team are en route to coordinate the European Union’s contribution to the massive relief efforts going on in the areas affected by a triple disaster: one of the strongest recorded earthquakes (so strong that it shifted the Earth’s axis), a powerful tsunami wave, and one of the Century’s most serious industrial accidents. 
If I had to find an image that defines what I have seen today in Haiti, I would chose the smile of Sheila. Sheila is a young lady that was eating an orange in one of the run down streets of Leogane. When we passed by, she waived at us, then smiled and offered me a piece of her fruit. I, in exchange, shared with her my bottle of water. I think Sheila showed me with this gesture how the Haitian people are like. They lived through a terrible tragedy but came through with their dignity intact. And they, with our help, can build a new Haiti. 