Turkey’s earthquake risk map has begun to be questioned following the 7.7 magnitude earthquakes in the Pazarcık district of Kahramanmaraş and the 7.6 magnitude earthquakes in the Elbistan district. So which provinces have a high earthquake risk?
When determining the provinces of Turkey with earthquake risk, the provinces are classified into five different categories. In this context, the provinces in the fourth and fifth categories have low earthquake risk. So which provinces have a high earthquake risk?
EASTERN ANATOLIA FAULT LINE
The East Anatolian Fault Line is a strike-slip fault line in eastern Turkey. The type of transformation between the Anatolian Plate and the Arabian Plate moving northward forms the tectonic boundary. The difference in the relative movements of the two plates is manifested in the left lateral movement along the fault. The East and North Anatolian faults together accommodate the westward movement of the Anatolian Plate, which was compressed due to the ongoing collision with the Eurasian Plate.
The East Anatolian Fault begins with the Maraş Triple Termination at the northern end of the Dead Sea Rift and ends in a northeastern direction at the Karlıova Triple Ending, where it merges with the North Anatolian Fault.
WHERE DOES IT PASS?
The Eastern Anatolian Fault Line continues to Hatay, Osmaniye, Gaziantep, Kahramanmaraş, Adıyaman, Elazığ, Bingöl, and Muş and then merges with the North Anatolian Fault Line from Erzincan.
TURKEY EARTHQUAKE HAZARD MAP
According to the information shared by AFAD, the Turkey Earthquake Hazard Map was renewed and published in the RG dated March 18, 2018, and entered into force on January 1, 2019.
The project was supported within the scope of the National Earthquake Research Program (UDAP) carried out by our Presidency. It was also supported by the Natural Disaster Insurance Agency (DASK). In addition, the ‘Building Earthquake Regulation of Turkey’ was published in the RG on the same date and entered into force simultaneously.
Here is the ranking of earthquake hazards in Turkey by risk zones:
Note: Some cities may be in more than one risk zone at the same time. This is related to the geographical location of cities.
FIRST-DEGREE RISK AREAS ARE AS FOLLOWS:
-İzmir
-Balıkesir
-Manisa
-Muğla
-Aydın
-Denizli
-Isparta
-Uşak
-Bursa
-Bilecek
-Yalova
-Sakarya
-Düzce
-Kocaeli
-Kırşehir
-Bolu
-Karabük
-Hatay
-Bartın
-Çankırı
-Tokat
-Amasya
-Çanakkale
-Erzincan
-Tunceli
-Bingöl
-Muş
-Hakkari
-Osmaniye
-Kırıkkale
Siirt
