It's been a week since earthquakes in Turkey and norhtern Syria caused devastation for millions of people.

The death toll is nearing 40,000 people and the president of Turkey says 13 million of the country's 85 million people have been affected in some way by the disaster. Here are some of the places and people that are helping those in need...

Kent Fire and Rescue Service

Firefighters from Kent have helped in the rescue of a 60-year-old woman who was trapped underneath a building after the earthquake in Turkey.

Three technical rescue firefighters from Kent Fire and Rescue have shared their experiences of being part of the international search and rescue team following the devastating earthquake.

Firefighter Jim Chaston, from Maidstone, said: "As you can imagine it's pretty much a scene of devastation it's a really large city that's almost completely devastated by the earthquake."

He spoke about a rescue they had helped with, saying: "We ran a dog and the dog gave us a live indication that there was an alive human scent in there.

When we explored a bit more we actually made verbal contact with the casualty and with a bit of hard work and a bit of tunnelling in, we managed to make a small enough hole to get our smallest member through into the void and make contact with the casualty which was obviously the first part of the rescue.

"We then had to work a way of making that hole big enough to get her out.

"I think the whole thing took about three hours, as you can imagine [there was] a lot of local interest around us and just a great feeling of elation when we eventually managed to rescue her."

Firefighter Brad Rebbeck, a crew manager based at Deal fire station, said: "I was lucky enough to play quite a central part in the first rescue we did with the 60-year-old lady, tunnelling through the building.

"We've actually made that much difference to someone's life who, she wouldn't be here if we hadn't have done what we did.

"It's an experience I'll never forget, that's for sure."

Alim-Et, Larkfield

Bosses of a Turkish restaurant have said they will donate their entire weekly income to help people in Turkey following two devastating earthquakes.

Alim-Et in Larkfield, will be using the money to buy essential items such as blankets, baby and children’s clothes, socks, baby food, toiletries and canned food.

Staff member Mevlana said: "We need as much business as possible as we want to fill a whole truck full of essential items."

The family-run restaurant has already paid for a hot food truck which has made its way to the Middle East this morning to deliver and cook meals for survivors.

Mevlana will also be heading out to Turkey to help with rescue efforts alongside one of his uncles.

"If it is an alive body or a corpse we are pulling out of the rubble, we just want to help," he explained. "We want to help our people out there.

"My wife is working out there in the hospitals. She had a little breakdown over the amount of babies that are coming in."

Mevlana's family is from one of the most impacted towns – Golbasi in Adiyaman, – and buildings his family owned have been made inhabitable.

He added: "We do not care about the buildings. We care about the people out there."

Alim-Et restaurant and takeaway in London Road has also taken to social media to appeal for donations. A post read: "We need your custom to help those suffering.

"People right now are still being rescued where possible. However, thousands are currently dead and more fatalities are expected to be recorded not just because of the earthquake, but because of the extreme snow and cold weather conditions whilst awaiting rescue.

"You are more than welcome to donate any money as well, donation boxes will be within the takeaway and the restaurant.

"However, main donation help will be if you can shop from us as much as possible this week. This can be from as little as a can of drink or portion of chips to anything larger."

A La Turka, Herne Bay

A La Turka owner Mehmet Dari, from Herne Bay, is also driving to Turkey to assist with rescue efforts after his brother-in-law and nephew died in the disaster.

He grew up in a village near Gaziantep, and said a number of his remaining relatives have been left homeless by the disaster.

The concerned 42-year-old, from Herne Bay, says he has struggled to contact family members living in the affected regions since the quakes.

“The situation is very bad,” said the dad-of-four. “We have lost some of the family, some of them are homeless and the weather is bad - people have nowhere to go.

“It’s a very upsetting situation, my heart broke. I don’t know how I’m still driving but I’m just trying my best."

He believes as many as 20 people living in a neighbourhood where he spends much of his time have also lost their lives. The death toll from the disaster across Turkey and Syria has risen to more than 5,000.

Mr Dari - who runs businesses in Canterbury, Herne Bay, Whitstable and Ramsgate - hopes to support his family, friends and countrymen as they deal with the fallout of the incidents.

“I have one more day of driving before I reach where my family are," he added. "I have some clothes, shoes, some food and medicine - whatever I could get for them.

“I think the world could be be helping better than this, they should help all of the people in this area - it could happen to anyone.”

Through a Facebook post, Mr Dari thanked those who had reached out with messages of condolence.

“I would like to thank everyone who has messaged me regarding the heartbreaking earthquakes in my home country,” he said.

“I am on my way to Turkey to support my family, friends and people of Turkey who have suffered such heartbreaking losses.”

COOK in Sittingbourne

Kind workers have set up a fundraiser to help a Turkish man get back to his country after horrifying earthquakes.

Ahmet, who works at COOK in Sittingbourne, is hoping to return after his home, town, family and friends were devastated by 7.8 magnitude earthquake last Monday.

Now, friends and colleagues from the business have raised more than £3,700 to send him to Turkey and help his family.

Organiser Josey Smith, from Queenborough, Sheppey, revealed Ahmet's parents were "lucky to survive" the earthquake, which has killed tens of thousands.

She said: "The awful news of these earthquakes in Turkey can feel like a world away from our kitchens in Kent.

"But that is not the case for our friend and colleague Ahmet. His parents’ home, his town, his family, his friends – everything has been devastated.

"His mum and dad were lucky to survive. They are now sleeping in a bus, with temperatures dropping to -10 at night.

"Some of his friends have lost their lives, others are still missing. The situation is desperate, and Ahmet needs to get home to support his loved ones and do what he can to help his community.

"Ahmet has been part of the team here for 13 years. He’s a genuinely kind and caring man who always looks out for us. Now we must look out for him. And we need your help.

"Please spare what you can to help us get him home in the aftermath of this terrible tragedy."

Another colleague, Paul Radford, added: "Ahmet was one of the first people I met when starting at COOK and from day one he made me feel welcome.

"Absolute epitome of the values Cook holds dear. So sorry to hear of your loss Ahmet, it's the very least any of us can do to support such a nice guy."

Davis Dry Cleaners

Donations for the Turkish and Syrian earthquake disaster have been pouring into a dry cleaners business on a housing estate.

Turkish Cypriot couple Mel and Ozzie Ormanci, who run Davis Dry Cleaners on Chatham's Davis Estate launched their appeal hours after the shocking news broke.

Although they have lived and worked in this country for most of their lives, they have family in northern Cyprus who have close links with Turkey where the brunt of the quake has been felt.

Mum-of-two, Mel, 44, said: "It's unbelievably shocking - worse than a war. We knew we had to do something."

Mel, originally from Famagusta, is collecting mountains of aid contributions at their shop in Shirley Avenue and liasing with a school in Beckenham which is organising the cargo oversees.

She is making regular trips to the makeshift aids depot where she works with volunteers to box up essentials to be transported either by air or across land to the disaster zone in southern Turkey and northern Syria.

While communication lines are poor, she is getting regular updates from the Turkish news stations which they tune into at their Chatham home in Hurstwood.

She said: " I put out a message on Facebook after everyone was asking what could they do. The response has been unbelievable.

"It is so much worse than what we are seeing on the BBC."

She is particularly fearful over the welfare of a group of 23 children from northern Cyprus who were in Turkey for a volleyballs tournament and were last reported trapped under rubble in the town of Adiyaman.

Mel was due to make a trip to south-east London to drop off on Friday but their shop was so full by yesterday afternoon their shop was so full that Ozzie,49, had to drive to depot in Romford, Essex.

The couple have halted their collections while they await to hear from the authorities on what items should now be prioritised.

Mel said: "The response has been fantastic we are now waiting for a response from the team in turkey to confirm what else is needed as it looks like we don’t need any more clothes but mainly medications and heaters baby food and nappies and dried food.

"My partner ended up delivering just from our shop three vans full and he then also helped on Saturday collecting more boxes and delivering them to a warehouse in Rochester where we are awaiting the logistics to collect from and deliver to Turkey."