On Feb. 6, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake jolted southern Turkey near the northern border of Syria. This quake was followed approximately nine hours later by a 7.5- magnitude earthquake. As of Feb. 9, at least 1,206 aftershocks have been reported and the death toll in Turkey is close to 36,000 and mounting. The situation is compounded by the cold weather and those rendered homeless are spending bitterly cold nights out in the open or in tents without proper heating.
Turkey is prone to earthquakes. It lies in a complex zone of collision between the Eurasian Plate and both the African and Arabian Plates. The government in 2007 introduced a new seismic code which was developed to protect against earthquakes in the country.
However builders often ignored the rules and escaped punishment due to corruption. After the 2011 Van earthquakes also called Ercis earthquake or Ercis-Van earthquake, which was a severe earthquake that struck near the cities of Ercis and Van in eastern Turkey on October 23, 2011 and in which more than 570 people were killed, and thousands of structures in Ercis, Van, and other nearby towns were destroyed President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had said: “Municipalities, constructors and supervisors should now see that their negligence amounts to murder”.
However, his warnings fell on deaf ears as in 2018, a zoning law gave amnesties to some unlicensed buildings and some with unlicensed floors. Now everyone, including the President, are blaming builders for ignoring laws and some going even as far as saying that the people died not because of the earthquake but because of the poor construction of buildings.
“It is common knowledge that many buildings in the areas pummeled by this week’s two massive earthquakes were built with inferior materials and methods, and often did not comply with government standards,” admitted Eyup Muhcu, president of the Chamber of Architects of Turkey.
Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag has already announced that 131 people are under investigation for their alleged responsibility in the construction of buildings that failed to withstand the quakes. The apartments were newly constructed last year, and screenshots have been shared on social media showing an advert saying that the building was “completed in compliance with the latest earthquake regulations”.
All materials and workmanship used were “first-class quality”, the advert claimed. As these were recently constructed it means they should have been built in accordance with the latest standards, updated in 2018, which require structures in earthquake-prone regions to use high-quality concrete reinforced with steel bars. Columns and beams must be distributed to effectively absorb the impact of earthquakes.
The earthquake in Turkey and the resultant destruction in which according to reports tall buildings were crushed like pancakes has raised many questions about building safety in our own Karachi which is not only threatened by earthquakes but also the possibility of a Tsunami. As far as building codes go we all know that they are not strictly followed in this city.
Actually, if you look at the rapid growth of high rises around the city you will notice that some buildings probably approved for 4 or 5 stories have suddenly bloomed to the extent of 10 or more without of course any change in the foundations which pose a grave threat in the event of an earthquake.
If the comparatively new buildings are endangered what about the old ones? According to reports, around 150 buildings in Kharadar, Mithadar and Lyari have been declared so dangerous that even a tremor measuring 2 on the Richter scale can bring them down. The advice by experts is “People living in dilapidated buildings in Karachi’s old city areas must be evacuated immediately and the buildings demolished“.
Better said than done. In order to do that the government must provide alternate accommodations and have a resettlement plan for this entire exercise. This relief could not be offered to the tenants of a lone high-rise demolished on the orders of the High Court so how do you expect any such working arrangement for more than a hundred buildings?
According to reports, Karachi sits near the convergence of the Eurasian, Arabian and Indian tectonic plates, making it an area particularly prone to seismic disturbances. Luckily, the Met Office in Karachi recently announced that there is little chance of a major earthquake in Karachi. Let us hope our Met Office is right because we are woefully ill-prepared for such an eventuality and the consequences are too horrific to even contemplate.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
The writer is a well-known columnist
Comments
Comments are closed.