Earthquake in Van 2011
| Earthquake in Van | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| date | October 23, 2011 | ||
| Time | 10:41:23 UTC | ||
| intensity | IX on the MM scale | ||
| Magnitude | 7.1 M W | ||
| depth | 18 km | ||
| epicenter | 38 ° 43 '16 " N , 43 ° 30' 29" E | ||
| country | Turkey | ||
| Tsunami | No | ||
| dead | 604 | ||
| Injured | 4152 | ||
| damage | approx. US $ 555-2200 million | ||
The earthquake in Van in October 2011 was an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.1 M w that struck eastern Turkey near the border with Iran in the province of Van on October 23 . The epicenter of the quake, which occurred at 1:41 p.m. local time (10:41 a.m. UTC), was 17 kilometers north-northeast of Van and 194 kilometers southwest of Yerevan . The hypocenter of the earthquake was assumed by the United States Geological Survey at a depth of 18 kilometers; according to Turkish seismologists, it is an earthquake with an even shallower depth.
Tectonic overview
Turkey is a tectonically active area that often experiences destructive earthquakes. Roughly speaking, the seismological processes in the region of the earthquake on October 23 are controlled by the collision of the Arabian plate with the Eurasian plate , with the Arabian plate moving north at a speed of about 24 mm / year. To the west of the earthquake on October 23, the tectonics is dominated by leaf displacements in the eastern and northern Anatolian fault zones . These large fault systems span much of central and western Turkey and accommodate the western movement of Anatolia , which is being squeezed together by the convergence of the Arab and Eurasian plates. The regional tectonics is in the area of Lake Van and east of it dominated by the Bitlis- suture zone in eastern Turkey and the fold-thrust belt of the Zagros in Iran . The October 23 earthquake struck a vast region of convergence beyond the Anatolian leaf-displacement tectonics. The focus mechanism is consistent with the mechanisms of the recorded faults in the region.
On November 9, 2011, a few kilometers to the south, an aftershock with a magnitude of 5.6 M w occurred, claiming further victims and causing damage. The faults associated with the two quakes had not yet been mapped.
The earthquake is just one in a series of several high-casualty earthquakes that have occurred in Turkey over the past few decades:
- The devastating Izmit earthquake in 1999 (M = 7.6) broke a section of the North Anatolian Fault about 1000 km further west of the earthquake on October 23. Its effects killed around 17,000 people, injured another 50,000 and left 500,000 homeless .
- About 70 km away from the center of the quake on October 23, 2011, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.3 occurred on November 11, 1976 , the effects of which destroyed several villages on the border between Turkey and Iran and left several thousand dead.
- In 1939 an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.8 hit the province of Erzincan . An estimated 33,000 people were killed at the time.
Effects
In the affected region , around 4,000 houses collapsed or were badly damaged as a result of the earthquake and aftershocks. 644 people died in the rubble, 604 of them in the main earthquake on October 23rd, another 40 people died in the aftershock on November 9th. The destruction was particularly severe in the city of Erciş , the aftershock caused severe damage in the city of Van, where many buildings damaged by the main quake collapsed.
The main quake could also be felt in more distant areas, for example in Syria , Lebanon , northern Israel , Jordan , Iraq , northwestern Iran , Georgia , Azerbaijan and Armenia as well as in the areas of Russia bordering the Caucasus .
The Turkish energy minister Taner Yıldız was once again faced with questions and fears about the decision to build several nuclear power plants. First, the Akkuyu nuclear power plant with four nuclear reactors was to be built; then another in the north on the Black Sea; possibly a third one. Yıldız announced after the earthquake that he would stick to the plans.
Six months after the earthquake, the Turkish parliament passed a law that provided for the reinforcement or the construction of non -earthquake-proof buildings in earthquake-prone areas.
Criticism of authorities
Once again it became clear how important earthquake-proof construction is.
“… Experts criticize the widespread disregard for building regulations and the lack of government controls. 'The quake doesn't kill,' said Serdar Harp, head of the Turkish Civil Engineers Association, 'the buildings kill'. Many houses in Van, one of the poorest provinces in Turkey, have been built hastily and without observing regulations in recent years. Inferior material is often used, or structural steel is saved to give the buildings support. ... Every now and then homeowners add additional floors to existing houses on their own initiative; an architect or other expert is rarely asked. Corrupt officials often turn a blind eye. After the quake ... in Van and Ercis you could see that other buildings immediately next to completely destroyed houses had withstood the shock without any noticeable damage.
According to experts, hundreds of thousands of residential buildings have been built in the earthquake-prone metropolis of Istanbul without regard to earthquake security. Numerous natural disasters in recent years, not least the devastating earthquake of 1999 with (officially) around 20,000 deaths, made it clear again and again how bad the building fabric is in many places. Despite the remarkable economic boom in Turkey, little has changed in that. "
Many people complained of arbitrariness and bribery in the distribution of aid supplies and that Turkey asked for help from abroad only late. A demonstration that took place in Van on November 10th was broken up by police using force.
Social impact
The Van earthquake came at a time when fighting between the PKK and the Turkish army was intensifying. On the morning of October 19, 2011, 24 security forces were killed and 18 wounded in an attack by the PKK on various Turkish military posts in Çukurca on the border with Iraq. The attack was the most loss-making for the Turkish army since 1993. As a direct reaction, Turkish commandos invaded northern Iraq in battalion strength. Demonstrations against the PKK were also held in Turkey and abroad. This tension then made it possible to read comments in the media that viewed the earthquake as retribution or God's vengeance. Other Kurdish-populated cities such as Diyarbakır and Şırnak were also wished for the same fate. The news anchor Duygu Canbaş and the presenter Müge Anlı caused particular excitement. Duygu Canbaş said:
“Türkiye bugün bir başka acı haberle […] sarsıldı. Tüm Türkiye. Her ne kadar doğusundan, Van'dan gelmiş olsa da bu haber, hepimizi gerçekten derinden sarstı ve üzdü. ”
“Today Turkey was shaken by another painful news [...]. All of Turkey. Although this news came from her east, from Van, it really shook us all deeply and made us sad. "
Mücke Anlı said during her broadcast on the following Monday in instructive wording:
“The police, who are pelted with stones by small children at every opportunity, were immediately on the spot and provided help. The hands that throw stones at them should break. When we feel like it, we throw stones at security guards as if we are hunting birds, or we shoot them in the mountains. And if something happens all of a sudden, we want the military, the police, to rush to help. It's not that easy. Everyone should be aware of their limits. "
The television supervisory authority RTÜK considered penalties for sedition. All political parties protested against these individual opinions and called for brotherhood and help. Many private aid supplies and supplies from charitable organizations have been sent to Van and Erciş.
Twelve television stations such as Kanal D , Star TV and NTV and three radio stations organized a joint donation marathon on October 26th under the slogan “Van İçin Tek Yürek” (For Van One Heart). The broadcaster Samanyolu TV organized its own appeal for donations with the motto “Kardeşlik Zamanı” (Time of Fraternity). Van İçin Tek Yürek collected 62 million TL and Kardeşlik Zamanı 65 million TL.
International aid
Several states, including the Federal Republic of Germany, provided disaster relief . Regardless of the financial crisis , Greece offered "every possible help" to its Turkish neighbor. (The formerly hostile states of Greece and Turkey were already getting closer thanks to the mutual earthquake aid in 1999.)
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ M 7.1 - EASTERN TURKEY ( English ) United States Geological Survey . October 23, 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2016.
- ^ A b c D. Güney: Van earthquakes (23 October 2011 and 9 November 2011) and performance of masonry and adobe structures. In: Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences. Volume 12/2012, pp. 3337-3342, DOI: 10.5194 / nhess-12-3337-2012 (English).
- ↑ a b zaman.com.tr
- ↑ a b n-tv.de
- ↑ a b c d M 7.1 - eastern Turkey ( English ) United States Geological Survey . October 23, 2011. Accessed February 25, 2020.
- ↑ Turkish earthquake watchdog fears over 1000 deaths , Die Welt . October 23, 2011.
- ^ M 5.6 - eastern Turkey. USGS, accessed May 29, 2020.
- ↑ Oguz Gunes: Turkey's grand challenge: disaster-proof building inventory within 20 years. In: Case Studies in Construction Materials. Volume 2, 2015, pp. 18–34, ISSN 2214-5095, DOI: 10.1016 / j.cscm.2014.12.003 .
- ↑ zvw.de
- ↑ zeit.de: zeit.de
- ↑ de.euronews.net
- ↑ Any help . In: Der Freitag , No. 43, October 27, 2011, p. 16