A family who lost their home in an explosion last year is now happy in their newly rebuilt and furnished bungalow thanks to Fethiye Belediye and Oceanwide Properties.
Some of you may recall reports concerning the home of a Fethiye family dramatically blowing up due to dynamite that had been buried beneath it.
The house, owned by Aysel and Mevlut Gunes and their family, is located in the village of Gocek Ovacik, not far from Fethiye. Mevlut’s father, Emin Gunes, had been a manager in charge of explosives during the 1960’s. During that time he had buried some dynamite under the property. Unaware of this on inheriting the property, Mevlut and Aysel happily lived in the property unaware of the ticking time bomb underneath.
It is thought that, over time, pressure built up and the dynamite became unstable. It’s possible that an earth tremor may have eventually set it off. Luckily the family were out at the time of the explosion. The result was devastating. The blast blew out many of the walls and took the majority of the family’s goods and belongings with it.
The local Muhtar (a Turkish position that could be described as the head of the village) informed the Fethiye Belediye (Council) of the families misfortune and asked if they could help. He explained that Mevlut, Aysel and their son all had disabilities meaning they were unable to work and had no money to rebuild or furnish their home. Mevlut is hard of hearing and unable to speak. Aysel suffers from mobility issues, and one of their sons has learning disabilities. They were effectively homeless as a result of the blast and in real need of help.
Fethiye Belediye (Council) agree to rebuild the house, Oceanwide Properties to provide the furnishings and interior.
The Belediye went to see the family and agreed to front the costs of rebuilding the home. Mevlut and Aysel were overjoyed. Work started almost immediately afterwards.
Soon after the build started Suleyman Akbay, MD here at Oceanwide Properties, received a call from Halime, the Manager of Social and Cultural Affairs at Fethiye council. During their conversation she mentioned the families situation and urgent need for furnishings and an interior for their home.
“How could we not help given the situation?” said Suleyman Akbay.
“Selda and myself had been looking for a charitable project to donate to for some time, this seemed perfect. It was the ideal way to give something straight back to those that truly need it. Selda and I met Aysel, Mevlut and their family on a number of occasions during the build. They are a lovely family. We provided the furnishings of the entire interior. Some of the furniture was donated by our clients and vendors, the decoration and rest of the fixtures, fittings, furniture and white goods we were happy to supply as part of our social responsibility. We are now just happy to see the family once again smiling and happy in their new home”.
If you would like to donate furniture, goods, money or supplies to local families in need please contact us.
Since completing the property we have been asked by a number of people how they can help other families in the area. Oceanwide Properties have agreed with the council to help raise awareness of the charitable work they do helping those in need in the local community. For anyone looking for a good cause to donate to, please consider the local council. Contact us and we will be happy to put you in touch.
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