The Covid-19 Situation in Turkey

I arrived in Istanbul, Turkey on Feb. 6^th, from Cyprus, with a 90-day visa in hand.

As it turns out, in hindsight, I arrived more than one month before Turkey discovered its first case of corona virus. Early February also dated before the disease hit Iran, Italy and then the rest of Europe. At that point, no ordinary citizens or travelers foresaw what was about to unfold.

Fast-forward to late April, 2020:

I’ve been here in Turkey every since arriving in early February, which means I’ve basically lived out this global Covid-19 pandemic here in Turkey. I’ve seen first hand the ongoing changes in daily life and travel in Turkey over the past 2 ½ months.

I’ve also been reading and researching about the pandemic worldwide, in Turkey and in the USA on a daily basis for the past month, and have been regularly checking other countries’ stories as well.

So at this point I have a pretty good overall understanding of what’s been going on in Turkey during this pandemic, both by first-hand observations & experiences and by news reports, government announcements & ongoing Covid-19 stats.

I decided to write this article about Turkey during Covid-19 for anyone interested out of sheer intellectual curiosity or to compare what’s going on in their own lives & countries.

In this post I discuss the current Covid-19 statistics in Turkey, the Turkish government’s handling of the pandemic and what daily life is like here during this new ‘Corona World’.

Covid-19 Situation in Turkey Overview

Turkey found its first case of Covid-19 in Istanbul on March 7^th (or 10^{th j})(explanation below).

Since then the government has gradually introduced tighter and tighter restrictions throughout the country as the number of cases continues to rise.

Over-all the country has been on what you could call a ‘loose lockdown’ since March 17th. People are recommended to stay home except to go out to buy food and essentials. We can also go out to exercise.

This does not include people age 65 and over, age 20 and younger, or anyone who’s ill. They are all on full quarantine. They’re not allowed to go out at all.

Also as of March 17^th most businesses, stores, restaurants, cafes, bars, events, cultural and entertainment sites, museums, mosques, schools closed. However, some important businesses, industry and economic activity has continued (more details later).

On April 2^nd or 3^rd the number of cases and deaths began escalating, so the Turkish government has progressively added more and more restrictions. To date, the government has only implemented full quarantines and complete business closures during the past two weekends. There have been no full 14-day or 30-day quarantines…yet.

I’d also like to point out that before all this, the Turkish government started taking actions and preparations quite early on. They got started in late January (!), a full two months BEFORE any cases arrived in Turkey and an entire month before I even arrived in Istanbul.

That seems to be the same approach taken by Germany, one of the countries that’s been applauded for its very fast and early response.

(compare THAT with the USA!)

Current Covid-19 Stats

As of April 21, 2020:

Total number of Covid-19 cases in Turkey = 95,591

Total number of Covid deaths to date = 2259

Death Rate from Covid in Turkey = 2.3%

Total number of tests done = 713,409

Since April 2^nd or 3^rd there’s been a steady daily steep increase in the number of cases and number of deaths in Turkey.

Globally, it looks like almost every country has had this period of high increase in cases and deaths, at some point or other, regardless of how the government handled things initially. But the jumps seem to vary by when the increase starts after the initial case is reported, how long it lasts, and how many total cases & deaths occur.
I recently read an article saying that Turkey had – at the time – the fastest increase in cases in the world. This certainly sounds quite alarming, particularly for anyone here in Turkey.

It’s quite an interesting claim, however, when you look at charts of various countries. It’s also more complex than this simple claim states. Here’s what I see:

While it’s true that in late March & April Turkey has had a serious steady & sharp increase in both cases and deaths, if you look at the charts for the World, USA and other countries, you’ll see that Turkey’s cases have actually been rising at a significantly lower rate than the total world stats and than for the USA (as well as some other countries). So Turkey’s curve is not actually as alarming as some other places.

Secondly, while it’s true that there’s been a rapid rise in cases & deaths, the total number of cases & deaths is actually quite low compared to the USA and several European countries. More specifically, Turkey has been holding steady at position #9 of countries with the most cases.

In terms of actual numbers, Turkey has a mere 12% of total cases as the USA and a mere 5% of deaths compared to the USA. More specifically, that’s 2259 total deaths in Turkey vs. 41,344 deaths in USA. In fact, in the US,more than 2000 Americans are dying EACH DAY.

Another positive stat is that Turkey’s death rate has been holding steady at just 2.1-2.3 % during this entire time frame. That’s about the same low death rate as experienced in several of the world’s most ‘successful’ countries handling the pandemic. Germany had a steady death rate of 2.1% for a long time, though that has recently risen to 3.3%.

In comparison, the worst-hit European countries, including Italy, Spain, France and UK all have death rates between 10%-17% !

Over in the USA, the death rate is steadily increasing on a daily basis. It’s currently at 5.3%, whereas on March 29^th, the death rate was 1.7%.

I’m anticipating that the US death toll will continue rising. I hope it doesn’t get as bad as Italy, France or UK! But with US government plans to re-open America, I’m a bit worried.

I’m guessing that the US death rate is going to continue climbing, especially with groups of Americans refusing to follow stay-at-home orders and/or social distancing measures.

While Turkey has had steady acceleration throughout April, both the number of cases and number of deaths has been pretty low. And the low death rate of just 2.2-2.3% is holding steady so far.

Like Germany, this seems to be a result of taking action very quickly at the beginning so that when the spread & accelaration begin, there were much fewer cases to kick off the spread.

Death rates are varying so much from country to country that it’s really hard to figure out what the main causes are between low & high death rates.

well over 700,000 tests done in Turkey by 4-21

Turkish Government Response to Covid-19

To its credit, the Turkish government responded very, very quickly to the initial news of Covid-19 in China. In fact, they started taking action two full months BEFORE any Covid cases reached the country! This seems to be the same strategy that Germany took.

First off, to put things into perspective…

China announced the new virus in late December. They announced the pandemic nature of Covid to WHO on Jan. 20^th.

Jan. 10^th – Turkey established a scientific team to handle the virus should it arrive.

Jan. 2oth – Turkey installed thermometers at all airports and began screening all arriving travelers from countries that had Covid cases.

Feb, 1 – Turkey evacuated Turkish citizens from Wuhan. Turkey was one of the first countries to do so. The evacuees were immediately put into 14-day quarantine.

Feb. 3 – All flights from China to Turkey were cancelled. (two weeks after China’s announcement to WHO)

Feb. 19^th – By this date, Turkish medical labs had already created a rapid Covid-19 test, which only requires 90 minutes to complete. (Most test kits in European countries developed then took 3 hours)

Feb. 23 – Border with Iran closed & flights canceled (One week after Iran announced cases)

Feb.29 – All flights to/from Iraq, Italy and Korea suspended.

→ Again, note that all of the above was done before one single case of Corona was found in Turkey!

March 7 / March 10^th ? – First case of Covid-19 found in Turkey, in Istanbul.

He was a Turkish citizen returning from Europe. The patient was immediately put into isolation for 14 days.

Interesting point: According to news sources, Turkey’s first case was found on March 10^th. However, that’s very interesting because I was in Istanbul from Feb. 6^th to March 9^th, when I flew to Cappadocia in central Turkey.

The day before I left Istanbul, the owner of my AirBnB apartment, a journalist, informed me that Turkey had it’s first case the day before. So I knew about the first Corona case in Istanbul before March 10th! Hmmm..

So I’m guessing that maybe the first case was found on March 7^th but that the announcement was made on March 10^th. ???

From the first case until March 17^th – cases increased from 1 to 47 (Basically in 7-10 days).

This is when the government started implementing closures, cancellations, disinfection & health safety measures. As soon as there were just a handful of cases in Turkey, the government started taking stringent measures.

March 12^th – All schools and universities closed.

March 16^th – All prayer gatherings at mosques suspended.

Individuals were allowed to enter mosques. However, within one week all mosques were closed completely.

March 17^th – All cafes, pubs, bars, nightclubs and most restaurants closed. Also all museums, cultural/tourist/sports/entertainment/performance sites and events closed. Festivals, sports events cancelled. Transportation somewhat limited.

March 18^th – President Erdogan held a big meeting about Covid-19 in Ankara.

He announced that Turkey will be like Germany, not like Italy or France. He’s been correct so far!

March 22 – Citizens aged 65 and older were placed under strict self-quarantine.

Hair salons, barber shops, Turkish hammams (spas) closed.

Government set about educating the public on prevention, social distancing, wearing masks, hand cleaning, etc… via community leaders.

March 25th – most international flights in/out of Turkey stopped (a few remain)

Government assigned 32,000 healthcare workers to deal with Covid

March 26^th, case numbers start escalating. Government clamped down harder.

March 28^th – beaches closed.

March ? – All domestic travel halted about this time.

April 2 or 3 – escalation increases more sharply. Government clamps down harder.

Everyone must wear face masks to enter stores. They’ll be turned away without a mask on.

April 11-12 – one weekend of full quarantine and complete store/market closures. Only bakeries open.

April 18-19 – another weekend of full quarantine.

Basically, as the number of cases & deaths continued rising rapidly, at a steady pace, the government implemented more & more strict measures.

Government’s measures to inform and help the citizens

Public Information Campaign: 14-Step Covid-19 Preventative Measures

Hand-delivered groceries, meals, supplies, medicines, pay checks to seniors +65 and the ill and youth 20 years + younger living on their own.

Free weekly delivery of 5 masks to every citizen

Supplies of hand sanitizers in markets, shops, restaurants

Income supplements to low-income citizens

Income supplements to businesses

Taxes, credit payments and other payments deferred

Dropped lending rates

Free Covid-19 testing at post offices

Citizens & police to continue feeding stray dogs & cats

Daily public applauding of health-care workers in Istanbul (also in Spain)

Erdogan & his wife also publicly applauding health-care workers

Other Government Measures

Mass disinfection, by workers in full Covid protective gear, of public plazas, historic landmarks & palaces & mosques in Istanbul and Ankara (I haven’t seen this in Antalya)

Mass disinfection of airplanes, buses, subways by workers in full Covid protective gear (I haven’t seen this in Antalya)

Mass production of Covid-19 tests, masks, gowns, ventilators

Shipping these medical supplies to several other countries in need

Released prisoners with minor offenses who’ve completed at least half their sentences. NOT released were murderers, rapists & other felons.

My First-hand experience here in Turkey

I actually didn’t have access to any of the aforementioned news or information about what was going on Turkey in regards to Covid-19 until sometime in the first week of April.

I’d searched online a few times, but couldn’t find anything. Eventually I started mentioning to friends that I had no information and they ‘magically’ sent me links to several great sites covering Covid from various angles.

So all the information I’ve just detailed above about the Turkish government’s responses and actions, as well as the Covid stats in Turkey, I did not learn about until recently. Besides knowing that Turkey had discovered its first Corona case in Istanbul before I flew out to Cappadocia on March 9^th, I was more or less in the dark.

I was almost entirely relying on what I was observing out in the streets from day to day. I wrote about that in a lot more detail in my article What it’s like to Travel during the Covid Pandemic here.

One of the most interesting times was during my 10-day stay in Cappadocia in central Turkey, March 9th-19^th.

When I arrived it was still the low season for hot air ballooning, so there were a handful of tourists walking around, arriving and departing, joining tours and going hot air ballooning. I was one of them. But it wasn’t crowded.

But over the course of the first week, I saw the area become progressively quieter and quieter. By the weekend, it was already pretty much a ghost town.

I didn’t know specifically what was going on in Turkey (or the world) with Corona, but I could see that no new tourists were arriving. I could assume people globally were putting a hold on their travels and either heading back home or staying in their home countries rather than heading out into the world.

The next week all hot air balloon flights were cancelled. The streets were empty, as were the hotels (I had to visit four luxury hotels there on assignment, and they were all completely empty, except for staff).

On March 19^th I took an overland bus to the city of Konya. I didn’t know that by then the government had closed things up. But I certainly found out when I arrived in Konya that evening.

Nearly every store, restaurant, cafe and shop was closed. And much to my dismay, I discovered that the museums and cultural events had been closed/cancelled (which was the only reason I’d gone to Konya. lol).

However, there was plenty of traffic, including what looked like a full fleet of buses, trams, mini-vans, taxis and passenger cars. And while the city center wasn’t exactly crowded with pedestrians, there were enough people around to make things look more or less normal.

In Konya I did get a smattering of information from one hotel staff who spoke English. He told me about the recent closures of cafes, restaurants, bars, schools, museums, cultural places, events and performances. I also heard about international flight cancellations.

A few days later I took an all-day bus to Antalya. Overland travel was still running regularly then. But Konya’s huge bus terminal was practically empty, as were all the buses lined up waiting to begin their trips. From what I could see, each bus had only 2-3 passengers, including mine.

That was just fine with me since I prefer quiet, and it certainly seemed safer with Corona around. A bus attendant offered hand sanitizer gel to the passengers. Some people were wearing masks, while others weren’t. I made sure I took a seat far from other passengers.

I arrived in Antalya the evening of Sunday, March 22^nd. Everything seemed pretty much the same as in Konya. Most shops & restaurants were closed, but a handful remained open, and public buses were running regularly. Parks, beaches and other public spaces were open.

Things remained pretty much like that during the last week of March. I was able to visit waterfalls, wander through the historic marina and old town, go suntanning on the beach and walk through all of Antalya’s beautiful parks.

But on April 2^nd I saw a distinct tightening up of things here in Antalya. Parks started closing. More businesses & restaurants were closing. Even fewer people were out in the streets. Then on April 3^rd things got even more restricted and quieter still.

From that development I could only assume that things were getting worse. And I could only wonder if things were getting worse specifically in Antalya or in Turkey overall.

Soon after that my friends sent me a link to Microsoft’s Bing Covid global updater. For the first time I could see the Covid stats for Turkey, other countries in the world, and global stats.

And from that I could confirm my assumptions about the spread of Corona in Turkey, based on my observations of the changes taking place. It was, in fact, exactly on April 2^nd or 3^rd that the corona cases started escalating here.

Meanwhile, on the Bing Covid site I soon discovered that the site provides links to news stories for any given country. It was there I learned about Turkey’s early preparations and actual dates for various closures, as well as all the other things Turkey’s been doing to inform & help citizens and co-operate with other countries in fighting the pandemic.

Current Current Situation

Since the time I started writing this article a few days ago, things have changed again. Turkey had held position #9 on the world Covid charts for several weeks. But that just changed to position #8, followed the next day to position #7.

Clearly things are continuing to escalate here. And the loose lock-down measures the government has taken to date aren’t effective enough.

Germany seems to be on the same track as Turkey. Both countries started preparations very early, before any cases arrived in their own nations. Both set up loose lock-downs. Both started out with very, very few cases and very, very few deaths, which continued for a couple weeks.

It looked quite promising. But then cases and deaths began escalating in both countries, and their positions in the world charts began climbing.

Yesterday I found out that the Turkish government has ordered a 4-day lock down, starting tomorrow. Thursday through Sunday. I spent most of yesterday grocery shopping to make sure I have enough food for four days. So let’s see how a 4-day quarantine goes!

I’ll be updating more on the Covid-19 situation in Turkey in the coming weeks.

In the meantime, please everyone stay safe and healthy.

Please feel free to share your own stories and perspectives here. I’d love to hear how things are where you are!

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