02.02.2025 18:12
JMO İzmir Branch President Sinancan Öziçer stated that the earthquake risk in İzmir is higher than that in Istanbul. Highlighting the districts of Karşıyaka, Çiğli, Bayraklı, Bornova, Konak, Balçova, Narlıdere, and Güzelbahçe in terms of risk, Öziçer said, "In the event of a 6.9 magnitude earthquake that could occur again in İzmir, we may face the risk of losing more than 117 of our citizens."
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The President of the Chamber of Geophysical Engineers (JMO) İzmir Branch, Sinancan Öziçer, stated that while the focus is on Istanbul regarding earthquakes, Turkey's third-largest city, İzmir, is more at risk than Istanbul. Öziçer highlighted the districts of Karşıyaka, Çiğli, Bayraklı, Bornova, Konak, Balçova, Narlıdere, and Güzelbahçe in terms of earthquake risk.
"THERE IS A RISK OF LOSING MORE THAN 117 OF OUR CITIZENS" Öziçer expressed that the alluvial layer amplifies the amplitude of earthquake waves, saying, "It is said that there will be an earthquake above 7, and when the earthquake occurs, Istanbul will suffer serious damage, but I foresee that İzmir is more at risk than Istanbul when looking at the risk rather than the magnitude of the potential earthquake. In İzmir, the areas with the highest population density consist of alluvial layers that are 80, 100, and 120 meters thick. This alluvial layer amplifies the amplitude of earthquake waves. The earthquake wave hits from that ground 2-3 times more than normal. The structures on this ground are tall, consisting of buildings with 8 or more floors. Considering that many of these buildings have reached the end of their lifespan and that there are many illegal structures that have not received engineering services, we can foresee that in a potential 6.9 magnitude earthquake in İzmir, we may face the risk of losing more than 117 of our citizens if we consider the time to be 20-22 seconds." he stated.
HE POINTED OUT 8 DISTRICTS Öziçer stated that the places with poor ground are regions where the distance between the bedrock and the surface is deep, saying, "In Çiğli, Karşıyaka, Bayraklı, Konak, Balçova, Narlıdere, and Güzelbahçe, which surround the İzmir Bay like a crescent, the buildings in the coastal area are either on fill ground or in places where the distance to the bedrock is deeper, so I am not saying that 'if an earthquake occurs, they will completely collapse,' but the likelihood of damage is higher. Additionally, since the depth in the inner parts of Bayraklı and Bornova is greater towards the plain, the ground there is riskier, and the effect of earthquake deformation is more significant. Considering the high population in areas with unfavorable ground, the number and age of buildings, and the many buildings that have not received engineering services, we can say that the risk in İzmir is higher." he said.
"THEY WILL BE THE FIRST STRUCTURES TO BE DAMAGED IN AN EARTHQUAKE" Öziçer mentioned that in 2019, the government provided building registration certificates for structures that had not received engineering services, stating, "İzmir is the province with the most illegal buildings in Turkey, and it is also the province where the most houses have been registered with building registration certificates. Therefore, we can say that the buildings that have received building registration certificates in areas with poor ground will be the first structures to be damaged in an earthquake of 5, 5.5, or 6 magnitude." he stated.
"THE STANDARDS OF THE LAST EARTHQUAKE REGULATION ARE HIGH LEVEL" Öziçer expressed that the standards of the last earthquake regulation issued in 2019 are at a high level, saying, "In the buildings constructed after the last earthquake regulation, regardless of how serious an earthquake occurs, we do not think that the loss of life experienced in the disasters of 1999 or the earthquake on February 6 will occur, even if the buildings suffer moderate or light damage. Single-story or high-rise buildings constructed after 2019 are more reliable for our citizens during an earthquake, as they comply with the earthquake regulation, regardless of the ground condition." he said.
"GROUND SURVEYS ARE NOT SUPERVISED BY A GEOPHYSICAL ENGINEER" Öziçer emphasized the importance of inspections conducted before and during the construction of buildings, stating, "One of the biggest problems we encountered in the İzmir earthquake was inspection. We saw that even new buildings completely collapsed due to lack of inspection in the earthquake on February 6. The main reason for this is the lack of inspection both before construction and during the manufacturing process. The most accurate inspections are conducted by geophysical and geological engineers. Looking at İzmir, there are no geophysical engineers employed in 20 of the 30 districts. The ground surveys submitted to those municipalities are not supervised by a geophysical engineer. This is one of the biggest problems of this inspection." he said.
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