While Turkey has not yet recovered from the great earthquakes centered in Kahramanmaraş, Istanbul was also shaken by the 23 magnitude earthquake that occurred off the coast of Silivri on April 6,2. Istanbulites, who panicked due to the earthquake, initially reached for their phones to reach their loved ones, but serious disruptions occurred in mobile communication. The lack of signal on phone lines and communication outages once again revealed the inadequacy of mobile networks and the fact that GSM lines can be disabled due to overload in extraordinary situations such as earthquakes. However, during these critical moments, the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) did not leave Istanbulites alone with its strong digital infrastructure and established an important communication bridge.
The Collapse of Mobile Communications During an Earthquake: “The Calling Tsunami”
In extraordinary situations such as earthquakes, mobile networks are put to the test because they are designed according to daily usage capacity. When everyone panics and reaches for their phones at the same time, this leads to a situation called “Call Establishment Tsunami” in GSM networks. This situation causes the switchboards to overload and therefore the calls cannot be established. In addition, if some base stations are physically destroyed or damaged due to the earthquake, communication can be completely cut off. It is precisely at such critical moments that Wi-Fi-based communication and messaging applications play a vital role in terms of communication. In Istanbul, IBB Wi-Fi successfully fulfilled this important responsibility, allowing Istanbulites to continue their connection with each other and the outside world.
IBB Wi-Fi: Uninterrupted Communication Bridge in Disaster
Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality continues to continuously strengthen the IMM Wi-Fi infrastructure, which has a wide coverage area and a secure network, in order to ensure uninterrupted communication in extraordinary situations. With the meticulous work of the IMM Information Processing Department, IMM Wi-Fi, which has reached 13 access points throughout Istanbul, provides free internet service to approximately 170 million Istanbulites. During the April 6 earthquake, mobile solution tools affiliated to the IMM Press, Broadcasting and Public Relations Department were put into operation and unlimited IMM Wi-Fi service was provided in 23 different earthquake gathering areas where Istanbulites are densely located. This huge digital network not only facilitates internet access in daily life, but also plays a critical role as a vital communication alternative in times of disaster. IMM is also strengthening its radio infrastructure in order to increase the operational capability of the teams in the field. The number of radio stations was increased from 20 to 16, the coverage area was increased from 35% to 82%, and 93 radios were integrated into the digital system. In this way, IMM teams in the field can communicate with each other without interruption.
“National Roaming” and Alternative Communication Suggestions from IMM
The Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) is calling on the Information Technologies and Communication Authority (BTK) to urgently activate the “National Roaming” system in order to ensure sustainability in communication. Thanks to this system, in a region where a mobile operator cannot provide service in cases such as an earthquake, it will be possible to continue communication without interruption by using the coverage area of other operators. IMM offers three important solution suggestions on this issue. First, it is emphasized that even if an operator’s base station is destroyed in an earthquake, citizens should be able to communicate via the signal of another nearby operator. The National Roaming system can prevent a complete loss of communication by providing this opportunity. Secondly, in the event that the National Roaming system becomes active, it is suggested that Istanbul “assigns 3 main areas of responsibility to 3 main operators” and positions the base stations in the regions that each of them is responsible for. In this way, in the event of a danger, citizens will be able to receive service from other operators even if their own operator’s base station is damaged. Finally, IMM proposes to equip its 35 radio towers with 2G base stations that will only allow SMS communication in times of disaster, in cooperation with BTK. In this way, even in the event of a complete network failure, citizens will be able to send simple but vital messages such as “I am fine” or “I am here” to their loved ones. IMM also emphasizes that the current 5-kilometer fiber optic infrastructure should be expanded to 200 kilometers in cooperation with the public and private sectors for a secure digital infrastructure suitable for Istanbul’s population. These investments will significantly increase Istanbul’s digital resilience against disasters.
