The 5.9 magnitude earthquake, the epicenter of which was in the Gölyaka district of Düzce, was also felt effectively in Ankara. While many Ankara residents started the day early due to the tremors, Gazi University Engineering Faculty Civil Engineering Department Lecturer, Earthquake Specialist Assoc. Dr. Bülent Özmen said, “Earthquake knows no distance, we should focus on efforts to reduce earthquake risks as a country.” Özmen also drew attention to individual precautions and said:
WEAK GROUND AFFECTS
“The earthquake in Düzce occurred on a fault called Karadere, which is related to the North Anatolian Fault. Actually, it took place at a far point from Ankara, but the earthquake; It knows no place, time or distance. It can be felt from far away places. The main reason for this is the ground feature of the building. If the ground is weak, people sitting on this type of ground may feel the earthquake more intensely because it magnifies the earthquake waves and reflects them on the building. A large part of Ankara is already on weak and moderately weak ground.”
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ANKARA FOUNDED BY FAULTS
“Although no active faults pass under the Ankara city centre, faults such as the North Anatolian Fault, Tuz Gölü Fault, Eskişehir Fault Zone, Çankırı Fault, and Ezine Pazarı Fault do pass in its vicinity, 70-80 km away. In other words, Ankara is surrounded by faults that have the potential to produce major earthquakes. We experienced the most concrete example of this in the Izmir earthquake that occurred on October 30, 2020. The earthquake actually occurred in the Aegean Sea and was 70 km away from Izmir city center, but it affected the city center a lot. Therefore, any earthquake that may occur in the vicinity of Ankara is highly likely to affect the city center.”
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FIGHTING EARTHQUAKE STARTS WITH THE INDIVIDUAL
Stating that it is necessary to be prepared for a possible earthquake, Assoc. Dr. Bülent Özmen said, “Before the question of where and when the earthquake will occur, we must take the necessary precautions as central, local governments and individually. We should all focus on earthquake risk reduction efforts. The fight against earthquakes starts with the individual, we must first increase our level of knowledge as individuals, learn the situation of the building we are in in terms of earthquake risk, and fix the items that can be considered dangerous at home.
17 AUGUST 2022
earthquake Specialist Assoc. Dr. Bülent Özmen said, “As can be seen concretely in the example of the 30 October 2020 Izmir earthquake, the earthquake knows no distance. Even at a distance of 70-80 km, it can cause serious damage and loss of life. In other words, the fact that an active fault does not pass just below or very close to the Ankara city center does not mean that there is no earthquake risk.
