2011 Van earthquake

Date: October 23, 2011

Place: Van, Turkey

Results: 644 people killed; 4,152 injured; more than 6,000 buildings destroyed; as many as 60,000 residents left homeless

Overview

The city of Van, located in the eastern part of Turkey near its border with Iran, was struck by an earthquake at 1:41 p.m. local time on October 23, 2011. The 7.2 magnitude earthquake originated in the East Anatolian plateau and was caused by the earth’s movement along a thrust fault, where the earth’s crust reacts by moving upward when it is squeezed in a north/south direction. The area is prone to seismic action from several different sources, including the East and North Anatolian faults, and has been the site of other devastating earthquakes over the years. The October 23 earthquake epicenter was approximately 12.4 miles underground and 12 miles outside the city of Van.

Just days later on November 9, 2011, another significant quake of 5.6 magnitude was registered in the same area. Although the area had experienced hundreds of aftershocks in the days following the initial quake, with some registering a magnitude as high as 6.0, seismologists determined that this quake had a different cause and was not an aftershock from the same source as the October 23 event. Experts report this quake was caused by a strike slip mechanism in the East and North Anatolian faults. A strike-slip fault occurs when two sides of a fault move horizontally against each other. Both quakes affected the same geographic area.

The 2011 quakes claimed the lives of 644 people, destroyed more than 6,000 buildings and left another 5,000 buildings in need of significant repairs. As many as 60,000 people were left without homes. Other significant damage occurred at the Van Ferit Melen Airport, and a prison, where two hundred inmates escaped. About fifty were quickly recaptured.

Response Efforts. Turkey has been hit with a number of significant earthquakes, including two deadly quakes in the northwest part of the country in 1999. In all, the country had experienced ten earthquakes registering at least a magnitude of 6.0 between 1990 and the 2011 quake. This earthquake frequency has provided governmental and nongovernmental organizations with many opportunities to respond and develop policies and procedures for disaster situations.

More than one hundred experts from various government entities, as well as volunteers from religious and social organizations, responded to the 2011 quakes. Humanitarian aid in the form of tents, foods, hygiene supplies, and other necessities arrived relatively quickly, although the earliest rescue efforts were sometimes hampered by a lack of tools that forced some to resort to using their hands to dig for survivors. The aftermath of the quake showed the determination of some people to survive and others to continue rescue efforts. News reports carried stories of a teen rescued sixty-one hours after the quake, several other people rescued after nearly three days, and a teenage boy rescued ninety-one hours after the quake struck.

In the first weeks after the disaster, additional government aid arrived in the form of more medical personnel and supplies, search dogs, construction equipment, portable toilets, prefabricated houses, portable stoves, mobile kitchens, and other items to help those displaced by the disaster.

Challenges. The area affected by the earthquake was well into autumn at the time of the event. Cold weather created a need for sturdy, warm shelter for the homeless, but it took several months for semi-permanent housing to be prepared and delivered. Nylon tents with heaters were provided for short-term use for many residents, but this created an additional problem. More than thirty tent fires broke out in the areas housing displaced earthquake victims during the period between early November and February. Dozens of people were burned, and at least twelve people died in the fires. Two of the fires each claimed three people from the same families.

The earthquake also highlighted ethnic challenges in the region. The portion of Turkey affected by the quake has a large Kurdish population, even though Kurds are a minority in Turkey. There were some reports in the days following the disaster that Kurds were denied aid by the Turkish government. There were also complaints that the government was reluctant to accept some offers of international assistance in the days immediately following the earthquake. Additionally, there was concern about a lack of intergovernmental cooperation between local and regional government entities.

One of the buildings affected by the November 9 earthquake was a six-story hotel where rescue workers and foreign journalists were staying. This hotel collapsed, trapping a number of journalists and rescuers inside. Government officials were criticized for not closing the hotel and several other structures in the aftermath of the quakes when the buildings showed signs of damage.

Impact

Within a few months of the start of 2012, the Turkish government provided twenty thousand container houses set up in modified cities to house displaced residents. Officials estimate it took fourteen months for permanent houses and enough infrastructures to be rebuilt so that residents could return to the city of Van.

Residents of the area and officials know that another quake is not only possible but likely. Experts have been urging officials to ensure that new homes are built to better withstand the effects of the earth’s shaking and protect residents. In response to the 2011 quake and others in the country’s past, Turkey has retrofitted more than seven hundred buildings to provide protection during a quake and has offered disaster preparedness training to 450,000 people across the country. However, some people have complained that these projects favor certain groups, mainly the wealthy, while squeezing out ethnic minorities and the poor.

Bibliography

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"Magnitude-7.2 Earthquake in Eastern Turkey: October 23, 2011." United States Geological Survey. U.S. Department of the Interior, 24 Oct. 2011. Web. 16 May 2016.

Onur, Murat. "Van Earthquake Exposes Turkey’s Fault Lines." Foreign Policy Journal. Foreign Policy Journal, 7 Nov. 2011. Web. 16 May 2016.

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