Ottawa woman struggles to contact elderly mother trapped in Turkiye following earthquake
A devastating earthquake in Türkiye has left many in Ottawa's Turkish community worried about the safety of their loved ones back home.
Nurben Bagceli has been trying to reach her elderly mother, who is trapped in her apartment in Türkiye.
"She's alone, she's 79 years old, and she's not a very mobile person," says Bagceli. "There is no electricity, there is no gas."
Many of her family members cannot be reached by phone, leaving Bagceli worried about her mother's situation.
"I don't know her current situation right now. Is she scared? She has any needs? Anything collapse or fell onto her body? I don't know," says Bagceli.
The powerful magnitude 7.8 earthquake Monday struck both Türkiye and neighboring Syria, killing more than 3,400 people and injuring thousands more.
Omer Ongun also has family in Türkiye. His parents and sister narrowly escaped the earthquake, but they can't go back home due to fear of aftershocks.
"They were very close to the epicenter," says Ongun. "They barely made it out. Right now, they are in the car and they’re going to an open air kind of a field, away from the buildings. They're really kind of trapped in their own way."
The Turkish community in Ottawa is now coming together to organize relief efforts.
Hulya Gunay, the president of the Turkish Canadian Cultural Association, says, "In Ottawa, as the Turkish Canadian Cultural Association, we have organized within our community to send much needed winter supplies and financial support."
Supplies such as winter clothing, blankets, hats, gloves, boots, sleeping bags, and tents will be collected and delivered to Türkiye with the help of Turkish Airlines on Wednesday and Friday.
As for Bagceli, all she can do now is hope and wait.
"I don't know what to do. I want to go, hop on a plane and go, but they said all the roads, bridges, and tunnels are now collapsed and you cannot reach out to the city, other than the army I think. So I will try my chance tomorrow," she says.
Anyone interested in donating supplies or relief funds is encouraged to visit the Turkish Canadian Cultural Association website for more information.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Budget 2023 prioritizes pocketbook help and clean economy, deficit projected at $40.1B
In the 2023 federal budget, the government is unveiling continued deficit spending targeted at Canadians' pocketbooks, public health care and the clean economy.
BREAKING
BREAKING | Budget 2023 proposes across-the-board 3 per cent spending cut for government departments
The federal budget proposes an across-the-board three per cent spending cut for all departments and agencies, a belt-tightening move after years of massive growth in the federal public service.
Federal government capping excise tax on alcohol after outcry
The increase in excise duties on all alcoholic products is being temporarily capped at two per cent starting next month instead of a planned 6.3 per cent increase.
Could Canada soon standardize USB chargers? Feds looking into it, budget says
Tucked into the 2023 federal budget unveiled on Tuesday in Ottawa, the Liberals have announced plans to explore implementing a standard charging port across Canada, in an effort to save Canadians some money and reduce waste.
Kids would rather learn from smart robots than less-smart humans: new study
A new study published by Canadian researchers suggests that kindergarten-age children would rather be taught by a competent robot than an incompetent human.
Was Stonehenge a giant calendar? New research suggests maybe not
Stonehenge's purpose has long been a mystery, with some researchers proposing that it may have been an ancient solar calendar. But now, new analysis suggests the calendar theory is unsubstantiated.
opinion
opinion | The gun control debate in America has been silenced
In the wake of another deadly mass shooting in America, that saw children as young as nine years old shot and killed, the gun control debate is going nowhere, writes CTV News political analyst Eric Ham.
Young children, the head of their school and its custodian. These are the victims of the Nashville school shooting
Another American community is reeling after a shooter killed three 9-year-olds and three adults at a private Christian elementary school in Nashville. These are the three children and three adults whose lives were taken by the shooter.
Nashville police release chilling security camera footage of suspected school shooter
Nashville police have released security camera footage of a suspected shooter entering the private Christian elementary school. The shooting claimed the lives of three children, all aged nine, and three adults.
Atlantic
-
Senior Mounties involved in N.S. mass shooting response either retired or in new jobs
Almost three years after a man disguised as a Mountie started murdering people in Portapique, N.S., on the night of April 18, 2020, the senior RCMP officers and staff involved in the tragic case have all either retired or moved into new jobs.
-
Budget 2023 prioritizes pocketbook help and clean economy, deficit projected at $40.1B
In the 2023 federal budget, the government is unveiling continued deficit spending targeted at Canadians' pocketbooks, public health care and the clean economy.
-
N.B. residents suffering from mystery brain disease call for fresh investigations
New Brunswickers suffering from a mystery neurological disorder are calling for an investigation into potential environmental causes of the health problems they've been living with for more than two years.
Toronto
-
Man accused of killing 'adventurous' teen in Toronto subway station wanted in Newfoundland
The man who killed a 16-year-old boy remembered as an avid adventurer has been wanted on an arrest warrant issued in a Newfoundland courtroom for nearly two years.
-
Family sues Hamilton, Ont. school board after 5-year-old girl loses part of finger in alleged bullying incident
The mother of a five-year-old girl said her daughter was allegedly bullied so badly she was left with a partially amputated finger from an incident in the washroom.
-
Toronto man with stage 4 cancer pleads for return of stolen rollerblades used to get to hospital
A Toronto man diagnosed with stage 4 cancer is desperate to get the rollerblades he uses to transit with to the hospital to receive radiation treatment back after they were taken from his car.
Montreal
-
Quebec police officer stabbed and killed during arrest, second wounded
A Quebec provincial police officer was fatally stabbed Monday night while performing an arrest in Louiseville, west of Trois-Rivieres, Que. The Surete du Quebec (SQ) has confirmed the identity of the officer, Sgt. Maureen Breau, who had been on the force for over 20 years. She was assigned to the post of the MRC de Maskinonge. Another officer was injured during the incident, but their life is not in danger.
-
Police identify last two victims of Old Montreal fire, both 18 years old
Montreal police say they have identified two more victims found in the rubble of a fire in Old Montreal 12 days ago. Charlie Lacroix and Walid Belkahla, both 18, are the sixth and seventh victims of the fire.
-
McGill student with ALS will lose access to her medication when she graduates
A 22-year-old McGill student who suffers from a terminal disease could soon lose access to the medication she needs because she's graduating from university.
Northern Ontario
-
Defence accuses Crown of compromising Sudbury murder trial as deliberations begin
As the jury began deliberating Tuesday on the fate of Robert Steven Wright, several restrictions on what can be reported about the case have been lifted. Here are a few of the items that were discussed during the trial when the jury was not present.
-
One dead, one injured in MR55 crash between pickup, tanker
The driver of a pickup truck, a 47-year-old woman, has died after a crash with a tanker on MR55 in the Greater Sudbury community of Lively on Tuesday morning, police say.
-
Federal government capping excise tax on alcohol after outcry
The increase in excise duties on all alcoholic products is being temporarily capped at two per cent starting next month instead of a planned 6.3 per cent increase.
London
-
WATCH
WATCH | London fire crews tackling large barn, grass fire in southeast London, Ont.
London fire crews are currently tackling a ‘large grass fire and working barn fire’ in the southeast section of the city Tuesday afternoon and are asking the public to avoid the area.
-
Death investigation involving child launched in Elgin County
OPP are investigating after discovering a child who was vital signs absent in West Elgin on Monday. According to police, no foul play is suspected in the child’s death.
-
Cinderblock thrown through London, Ont. bedroom window, toddler injured
A London toddler is fortunate to have avoided serious injury after a giant cinderblock came through her bedroom window in the middle of the night. Around 4 a.m. on March 26, Riiver was sleeping with her head right under the front window of her home on Emerson Avenue.
Winnipeg
-
Winnipeg has not recorded a positive temperature since Valentine's Day. Here is how long the cold could last
Manitobans waiting for the temperature to warm up this spring will have to wait a little longer.
-
Budget 2023 prioritizes pocketbook help and clean economy, deficit projected at $40.1B
In the 2023 federal budget, the government is unveiling continued deficit spending targeted at Canadians' pocketbooks, public health care and the clean economy.
-
'It was my responsibility': Manitoba girl saves siblings from destructive house fire
A 12-year-old Manitoba girl is being hailed a hero after saving her two younger brothers from a house fire.
Kitchener
-
Budget 2023 prioritizes pocketbook help and clean economy, deficit projected at $40.1B
In the 2023 federal budget, the government is unveiling continued deficit spending targeted at Canadians' pocketbooks, public health care and the clean economy.
-
Hamilton family raising awareness about Strep A after sudden death of toddler
A Hamilton family is hoping to raise awareness about Strep A after the tragic death of their two-year-old.
-
'They're struggling to stretch their own budget': Grocery prices impact local food budgets
A one-time grocery rebate for low income Canadians is coming at time where many residents in the region are struggling to keep up with their food bills.
Calgary
-
Police investigate suspicious death in downtown Calgary high rise
Police are investigating the circumstances of the death of a woman in a residential tower in downtown Calgary.
-
Gas prices won't be record breaking, but they will be high this summer
The price of gas is heading upward and it's expected to remain high through the summer, thanks to a number of market forces.
-
15-year-old girl shot to death in northeast Calgary
A 15-year-old girl was shot and killed in the northeast Calgary community of Martindale on Tuesday.
Saskatoon
-
Five-year-old Saskatoon boy suffers head injury in dog attack
A Saskatoon couple says they felt ignored by police after their five-year-old foster son was attacked by a dog outside the Meadowgreen Confectionary on March 22.
-
Budget 2023 prioritizes pocketbook help and clean economy, deficit projected at $40.1B
In the 2023 federal budget, the government is unveiling continued deficit spending targeted at Canadians' pocketbooks, public health care and the clean economy.
-
Saskatoon police arrest two people after standoff in Mount Royal neighbourhood
The Saskatoon police are on the scene of an apparent standoff in the Mount Royal neighbourhood this morning.
Edmonton
-
Edmonton man comes home to find snake native to U.S. in apartment
An Edmonton man says he hasn't slept well since finding a metre-long snake that's native to the eastern and southern American states behind his couch.
-
'Long road ahead of him': Employee shot at Edmonton Pizza Hut enters physiotherapy
The Pizza Hut employee who was shot at his workplace earlier this month is on the long road to recovery, his sister has confirmed Tuesday to CTV News Edmonton.
-
Edmonton approves permit for 'health hub' that some in Ritchie, Strathcona are fighting
Boyle Street Community Services is one step closer to operating a community health hub, including an overdose prevention site near Whyte Avenue in Edmonton.
Vancouver
-
Sanctuary and torment: The complex history of Riverview Hospital
Overlooking the Coquitlam River, the psychiatric institution still widely known as Riverview was established to treat British Columbians with the most severe mental illnesses in a relaxing setting. In the end, it would prove to be both a sanctuary and a place of torment for its patients.
-
'Once in a lifetime opportunity': Pair of B.C. resort properties in the Rockies listed for sale
A pair of sprawling resort properties in B.C. – complete with a hotel, ski runs and lifts, lakefront cabins, a campground, and a pub – are on sale for less than the price of some Vancouver tear-downs.
-
Pattullo Bridge to close for 4 days over Easter weekend
A busy bridge over the Fraser River will be closed through Easter weekend to accommodate ongoing construction work, TransLink announced Tuesday.
Regina
-
Sask. MLA Derek Meyers dies following battle with cancer
Derek Meyers, the MLA for Regina Walsh Acres has died following a battle with cancer, according to the province.
-
'Strong value': Regina police to officially launch Aerial Support Unit
The Regina Police Service (RPS) will be officially launching their Aerial Support Unit on Thursday morning.
-
Semi causes 'major damage' after colliding with overhead sign in Moose Jaw
Moose Jaw's Main Street was the site of a collision between a semi and an overhead sign on Tuesday afternoon.