Turkish minister unveils cause of buildings collapse during earthquake

Turkish Minister of Environment and Urban Planning Murat Kurum has said that most of the buildings that collapsed in the earthquake were built before the previous disaster in 1999, the houses collapsed due to problems with the soil, utilities and soil liquefaction.

“The earthquake in Türkiye in 1999 claimed the lives of 18,000 people. After this catastrophe, the country's government decided to tighten the rules for building in earthquake-prone areas,” he said in an interview with Yeni Safak newspaper.

Kurum noted that the authorities continue working within the tightened rules, taking into account the needs of the city, both in ground surveys and in determining new sites for construction.

He said that it is now necessary to understand and explain why some buildings collapsed while others did not collapse in the earthquake-hit area.

Kurum added that heavily damaged buildings in the earthquake zone would be demolished.

The minister added that aftershocks still continue in southeastern Türkiye.

Kurum said that the authorities plan to complete the damage assessment process in Gaziantep province within three days, while the damage assessment across Türkiye within a week.

Türkiye was struck by an earthquake measuring 7.7 on February 6 morning, which, according to President Erdogan, was the most powerful since 1939.

On the same day, another earthquake measuring 7.6 occurred. Later, aftershocks were observed in Syria, where people died in Iran and several other countries in the region.