After the earthquake in Turkey and Syria on February 6, 2023, Erzin fell into the headlines of the world media: supposedly in the city there were almost no buildings, because his mayor did not allow housing with a violation of technology. We checked whether this version is true.
Earthquakes in the southeast of Turkey on the morning of February 6 brought To the destruction of more than 50,000 buildings in Turkey and Syria. Turkish authorities issued The arrest orders are more than 130 employees of construction companies that could be responsible for illegal and low -quality construction. Moreover, according to headlines Media, in the city of Erzin, not a single building was injured in the southeast of Turkey. Many They called it This phenomenon is "a miracle in Erzin." As the publications write "Kommersant" And "News”, With this“ miracle ”the city owes its mayor, who was“ called a hero because of the buildings surviving during the earthquake ”. "Miracle in Erzin" is also actively discussing Bloggers And Users social networks.
The earthquake on February 6, 2023 caused great damage to the Hatai province, located about 100 km from the epicenter. According to February 17, it was in Hatai Destroyed About 15,000 buildings. Among the news of destruction, headings about the city stood out ErzinWhere allegedly not a single building was injured. You can check the degree of damage to buildings through onlineplatform Turkish Ministry of Environment, Urban Planning and Climate Changes. On February 17 in Erzin was examined 847 buildings, of which seven were completely destroyed, 53 - severely damaged, and 109 - partially damaged. That is, there are still destroyed and completely collapsed houses in Erzin, although their percentage (7.1%) is small compared to the rest cities.
If you compare the situation in Erzin with similar settlements in the province of Hatai, you can make sure that the levels of destruction are approximately similar. For example, c PAYASAwhich is also in Khatai and approximately corresponds to Erzin in size and number of population, 5.6% of the surveyed buildings turned out to be Heavily damaged or destroyed. Of course, these numbers give only an approximate picture, since such statistics do not take into account the number of storeys, buildings density and other factors that potentially affect the scale of damage.
Some seismologists They saythat the relatively small scale of destruction in Erzin is explained by several factors. Firstly, the location of the city relative to the tectonic fault. If you look at card Seismic activity from February 6 to February 17, 2023, it is clear that most of the underground shocks occurred along the breaks of the plates and were not so felt in the Erzin area. Former professor of Istanbul Technical University of Tuyisyuz noted: “There is no tectonic movement near Erzin. The collapse takes place 30–40 km from the city, and between them there is a large mountain range Amanos. ”
Secondly, many seismologists They thinkthat the geological structure of the soil “protected” Erzin from large destruction. Studies show that rocky soils provide better stability, but sandy soil enhances destructive vibrations. Shyukryu Ersa, professor at the Technical University of Yyldyz, noted: “Hassa, Islahiy, Kyrikhan, Antksya and Samandag were badly injured due to bad ground conditions. Perhaps it was precisely because of the soil that Erzin suffered less. ” By words Turkish geophysic engineer Ali Yyldyzel, Erzin Sitting On a layer of rocky breed, and most likely, such an arrangement helped protect it from disaster. ”
Thirdly, the city is mainly built up with low-rise buildings and private houses. The higher the number of storeys, the more The amplitude of the oscillations and the probability of collapse. In Erzin, apartment buildings do not exceed four floors. In addition, many owners of private houses built them on their own, Drawing Particular attention to the foundation and strengthening of sandy soil with stones. This made it possible to make their buildings more persistent.
And, finally, fourthly, on a relatively small scale of destruction in Erzin, there is still a merit of city authorities. The current mayor of the city of Elmasoglu occupies This post since March 2019. And although there are not many buildings built under his administration in Erzin, Elmasoglu claimsWhich has repeatedly refused the illegal superstructure of floors and the construction of illegal and multi -storey buildings. Elmasoglu himself told In an interview: "Soon after the elections, one distant relative of mine came to me and said:" We were fined for illegal construction. " I told him that I could not do anything, and he replied: “Are you the only honest in Turkey?” ”It is difficult to check whether his words are true and how many buildings Elmasoglu are so“ saved ”from collapse. But the inhabitants of the city are really give Prheard for the current mayor of the city and previous administrations, which, according to citizens, have always opposed multi -storey construction.
Thus, Erzin survived not “miraculously”, but thanks to the totality of factors: the small size of the city, its favorable tectonic position and the geological structure of the soil. At the same time, the refusal of the mayor Elmasoglu give licenses for construction in violation of the norms, according to his own statements and reviews of the city residents, also played a role.
Photo on the cover: social networks
Half truth
- Meduza. The Turkish city Erzin survived an earthquake without sacrifices and destruction - while the element was erased by neighboring cities from the face of the earth. And there is no miracle in this
- BBC. TOAM Earthquake has changed the appearance of the cities of Turkey and Syria
- Deutsche Welle Documentary: Istanbul Earthquake - Risk and Early Warning
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