Is Neglect the Cause of the Balance Sheet of the February 6 Earthquakes?

In these two earthquakes, which devastated Turkey and were recorded as the "Disaster of the Century", more than 50 thousand of our citizens lost their lives, more than a hundred thousand of our citizens were injured, and the homes of hundreds of thousands of our citizens became unusable.

After the earthquake, government institutions, non-governmental organizations and volunteers worked together to heal the wounds.

So what is the reason why the earthquake's toll was so heavy? Is Turkey prepared for a possible Marmara earthquake? How is Bursa's ground survey?

Making a statement to the Everybody Duysun correspondent about the February 6 earthquakes, Chamber of Geological Engineers Southern Marmara Branch President Engin Er said that the balance sheet of the earthquake was caused by years of neglect.

Stating that official institutions requested geological engineer teams as soon as the February 6 earthquake occurred, Chamber of Geological Engineers South Marmara Branch President Engin Er stated that they are doing research on why the buildings in the earthquake zone collapsed and why people suffered loss of life and property.

ER: THERE ARE YEARS OF NEGLIGENCE IN THE FEBRUARY 6 EARTHQUAKE

Stating that ground surveys of many buildings were not carried out and that the applications of the buildings for which ground surveys were carried out were not inspected, Engin Er said, “We boarded the first plane to Hatay with 7 of our colleagues. We have determined how the work there should be done. There were not only geological engineers, but also civil engineers, architects, prosecutors and crime scene investigation teams. We started field work there. We saw that there has been years of neglect. Work that has not been carried out in terms of safety for years has caused loss of life and property. We could only go to buildings where casualties occurred. We saw that there were deficiencies regarding the ground, concrete, iron, plan and project. We have seen that buildings that comply with the regulations remain standing and do not suffer any loss of life or property, even if the building next to them collapses. This was a great pain, it was impossible not to get emotional there. All of Türkiye was in cooperation. If precautions had been taken, we would not have experienced such an incident. We saw that ground surveys of many buildings in Iskenderun were not carried out and the applications of the constructed buildings were not inspected. The first building we went to was a 1,5 year old building. There were no deaths inside the building, but the building collapsed onto the road and cars were left under that building. We saw people dying in vehicles and cars being crushed like fruit pulp. "We saw that many lives were lost in buildings that were not suitable in terms of ground properties." said.

HOW IS BURSA'S GROUND SURVEY?

Emphasizing that there are many deficiencies regarding ground survey in Bursa, Er stated that the inspections regarding ground surveys are not carried out properly, especially in organized industrial zones.

Noting that there is no ground inspection in the regulations and that inspection companies are not in an organization that can control the ground, Er said, “Planning in Bursa needs to be reconsidered. The places where the most damage occurs are above the fault lines. Active fault lines in Bursa should be marked on 1/1000 implementation plans. Unfortunately, it is not marked at the moment. Measures regarding liquefaction areas need to be taken more strictly. Unfortunately, we also have shortcomings in Bursa. There have been many changes since August 17th. Many of the concessions made in practice after the February 6 earthquake are no longer given, but I can say that we still have shortcomings. Look at the active fault lines of official institutions, how many fault lines are there, which part of which building do they pass through? “It is clearly evident.” he said.

A NEW 95 KM FAULT LINE FROM KAYAPA TO YENISEHİR

Emphasizing that there is another fault line, approximately 95 kilometers long, starting from Kayapa towards Yenişehir, Chamber of Geological Engineers South Marmara Branch President Engin Er said that this fault line has the potential to produce earthquakes up to 7.3 magnitude and that these active fault lines have an application rate of 1/1000. He stated that it should be marked in the plans.

ALL OF BURSA EXCEPT HARMANCIK AND KELES ARE IN DANGER

Stating that before 2012 there were 185 fault lines, now there are nearly 500 fault lines, Er said:

“In Bursa, in all our districts except Harmancık and Keles, the fault lines pass either through or on the edge of the settlements. We have 17 districts and 14 fault lines named after the district. Liquefaction areas need to be examined in detail. When a landslide occurs, we see hundreds of buildings damaged. We are a province that suffered loss of life due to floods. We are very close to the Marmara Sea. We are very close to the fault line where the expected Marmara earthquake will occur. We must also prepare for tsunamis. According to the statement of foreign scientists, there is a possibility of tsunamis up to 3 meters high. "We need to put the plans back on the table, plan for natural disasters and carry out strict supervision."