The earthquake reality of Bursa was discussed at the "Common Mind Workshop on Reducing Earthquake Damages" organized in cooperation with Bursa Metropolitan Municipality and AFAD. Stating that not only institutions but also individuals have an obligation to fulfill their responsibilities in reducing earthquake damage, Metropolitan Mayor Alinur Aktaş said, "I hope we will not face an earthquake, but we should not forget that such a reality exists."
Bursa Metropolitan Municipality, which is located on the first degree seismic belt, has carried out important studies from ground surveys to earthquake risk management and the preparation of an earthquake master plan, and now it has carried out a workshop on earthquake damage reduction. The Common Mind Workshop on Earthquake Damage Reduction, organized in cooperation with the Metropolitan Municipality and AFAD, started with the participation of representatives of public institutions and organizations and academics who are experts in their fields. To the opening ceremony of the workshop held at Merinos Atatürk Congress and Culture Center (Merinos AKKM); Bursa Governor Yakup Canbolat, Metropolitan Mayor Alinur Aktaş and AFAD Deputy President İsmail Palakoğlu also attended.
“This does not make sense”
Bursa Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Alinur Aktaş, who spoke at the opening ceremony of the workshop, said that after each earthquake, she received many calls and everyone asked about the urban transformation in their neighborhood. Expressing that there is a logical error on this issue, President Aktaş said, “We would sigh if there were a small scratch on our car. We do not apply to the state to change our white goods, furniture in our house, or our car. Unfortunately, we always bring the state to mind about houses that are not earthquake safe. Let alone paying for the conversion, 'How much money can I get on top of it?' We act in thought. I'm sorry to say, but with this logic, it is not possible for us to be in an earthquake-related urban transformation. Earthquake is a culture like traffic and environment. Not just remembering the reality of the earthquake, but knowing its existence, every individual should accept this fact and fulfill their responsibility to take precautions in their own way," he said.
Irreparable historical heritage
Bursa Governor Yakup Canbolat also stated that Bursa has an irreparable cultural heritage 'at the point of disasters'. Noting that they want to carry Bursa's cultural heritage safely to the future with a common mind, Canbolat said, “Historically, we attach great importance to the damage of earthquakes, which is one of the greatest dangers, and we see such workshops as a great opportunity. With the strength of the workshop, we aim to live a safe life in Bursa, to reduce and prevent the loss of life and property that may be caused by disasters, to ensure the effective use of resources, to increase cooperation between stakeholders, and to reduce expenditures for intervention during disasters and recovery after disasters. If we do not want all the assets of Bursa, which has come to us as a great legacy from history, to be destroyed by an earthquake that will last for seconds; We expect everyone to think deeply about the facts once again, act with a sense of responsibility, and all our institutions will do their best in the fight against the earthquake as if there will be an earthquake tomorrow.”
20 earthquakes in 4 years
Drawing attention to the issue with the earthquake statistics he gave for Turkey and Bursa, AFAD Vice President İsmail Palakoğlu noted that Turkey is one of the world's most dangerous regions in terms of geological and tectonic movements and one of the most dangerous regions in the world in terms of earthquakes. Drawing attention to the high number of earthquakes in Bursa, Palakoğlu said, “In the last 20 years, 0.5 thousand 4,5 earthquakes with magnitudes ranging from 4 to 636 have occurred in Bursa. These data clearly reveal that we have to prepare Bursa and Turkey for earthquakes. As AFAD, we have the second largest earthquake monitoring network in Europe. Our 1143 stations operate on a 7/24 basis. Emphasizing that in the workshop, all the risks specific to Bursa and the actions to be taken to minimize the damages that may occur after the earthquake will be discussed in all aspects, Palakoğlu added that 2022 was declared the year of the exercise by the Ministry of Interior and that they plan to hold 2022 exercises in 54.
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