This is the 9454th most frequent Turkish word.
afette
"Afette" means "in the disaster" in English.
In this sentence, 'afette' functions as a locative case form of 'afet', meaning 'in the disaster'.
Bu yıl yaşanan afette birçok ev zarar gördü.
Many homes were damaged in the disaster that occurred this year.
Here, 'afette' indicates the context in which the volunteers provided assistance, specifically referring to 'during the disaster'.
Afette yardım eden gönüllülere teşekkür edildi.
Volunteers who helped during the disaster were thanked.
In this context, 'afette' again is locative, indicating the setting or event ('in the disaster') associated with the damage.