NUcheckt checks messages for their reliability. This time we look at the Turkish city of Erzin, which survived the earthquakes almost unscathed. According to mayor Ökkes Elmasoglu, this was because safe and earthquake-resistant construction was carried out under his rule. In reality, the ground on which the city stands plays a much more important role.
Media at home and abroad called it’s the ‘miracle of Erzin’. The city is located in the middle of the hard-hit province of Hatay, about 80 kilometers from the earthquake’s epicenter.
Nearby are cities such as Antioch, Osmaniye and Iskenderun. Those cities were almost completely destroyed and many people died. But the buildings and about 40,000 inhabitants of Erzin remained virtually unscathed.
In Erzin, according to Elmasoglu, not a single building collapsed and no one was killed. The mayor wrote this in conversation with the Turkish television channel TV5 to his policy. Elmasoglu claimed that not a single building has been erected illegally in his region in recent years.
“Safety not put at risk for some money”
In his own words, the mayor “did not put people’s safety at risk to make some money”. He was referring to the accusations against the AKP of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Mayors of that party would be more concerned with enriching themselves and their friends than observing the building rules.
Elmasoglu is a member of the CHP, the Republican People’s Party. With 134 seats in parliament, it is the largest party in opposition to Erdogan’s AKP. The message was clear: Erdogan and his party ignore the building rules, while other parties do have an eye for the safety of citizens.
Erzin built on solid rock ground
Soon after Elmasoglu’s success claim, scientists came forward with a different explanation. “The soil is the main reason we have no damage,” said leading geologist Ömer Emre. He has been researching the fault lines in the region for forty years.
Erzin is built on rocky ground, which is less susceptible to hard impacts. In an earthquake, the ground absorbs the shocks. Other towns in the area are lower and are built on sandy soil. “In an earthquake, this ground moves like a wave. It makes those cities very vulnerable,” Emre explained The New York Times.
Another geologist, Okan Tüysüz, be on it that Erzin may be near some fault lines, but not on them. “The Amanos (nowadays called the Nur Mountains, ed.) is located between the fault lines. The ground will have shaken less violently there.” Tremors are felt there, but less intense than on the fault lines.
0:32Learning from past quakes
Architects being also note that Erzin has few buildings higher than four storeys. Many buildings are also separate from each other. A building that (partially) collapses does not pull other buildings with it.
Elmasoglu has only been mayor of Erzin since 2019. By far most of the buildings in the city were built before he started his term. Some have been standing for more than sixty years, despite the many quakes in the area. The city has learned to live with earthquakes for some time now.
Conclusion
There is no question of a miracle in Erzin. The city suffered little damage due to a combination of solid ground and few high-rise buildings. The fact that much less damage and casualties were recorded is no proof of a successful policy by the authorities.
Even if the minimal damage is due to stricter building policies, a single mayor can’t take credit for that. That policy has been in effect for decades. This is necessary because the area is prone to earthquakes.
