Tag: Turkey Earthquakes

‘Gurgaon Sits On A Seismic Faultline; Safety Audit Of High-rises A Must’

‘Gurgaon Sits On A Seismic Faultline; Safety Audit Of High-rises A Must’

By LokMarg

Sanwariya Garg, 75, is a resident of Gurugram is worried about the safety and security of his family after watching the visuals of earthquakes in Turkey-Syria

Seven years ago, I shifted from my hometown Rohtak to a high-rise apartment in a tony sector of Gurgaon. This gated community, named Harmony Society, has all the features of modern living amenities and my family felt it a privilege to move in here. However, ever since I saw the devastating earthquakes in Turkey and Sryia, which showed towering housing structures turning into rubble, I am having sleepless nights.

To make the situation worse, I recently saw a news report about a housing society named Chintels Paradiso in Sector 109, where a portion of the roof of an apartment collapsed, and causing two deaths. This society has 530 flats and nearly 420 families have been staying there for the past four years. This project started in 2011 and possession was given in 2017. I wonder what structural flaws caused this accident, as the building was provided with safe occupation certificated by civic authorities just five years back.

When the construction of a building is completed, multiple checks are conducted to evaluate the structural integrity and safety of the building before it is declared safe to occupy. The recommendatory National Building Code has a section on safety of residential buildings, and the Real Estate Regulatory Act (RERA) places the onus of structural defects on the developer for a period of five years.

ALSO READ: Learn From Turkey, Carry Out Safety Audits

Such incidents clearly shake your belief in the system. In many cases the problem is inferior quality of materials used, or poor workmanship, poor maintenance which leads to seepage, and swelling of joints that can weaken the structures. And the problem is not limited to private builders. Some time ago, I distinctly remember, DDA (Delhi Development Authority) flats in Dwarka witnessed collapse of several balconies.

However, high-rise buildings carry far greater risk. One faulty component of a multi-storey structure, triggered by an earthquake like event, can bring down an entire tower like a house of cards. Turkey is a living example to this fact. The government must draw its lessons from the tragedy.

As a citizen of Gurgaon, I demand a mandatory and timely structural audit which should be done by expert agencies. Supreme Court and city authorities should ask an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) or a Central Building Research Institute (CBRI) to execute such audits. Residents and buyers should not be intimidated if the developer gets aggressive when you ask for a relook at certain parts of the structure. If you pay the money, you have the right to ask for a perfect house.

Delhi being a seismic zone grade 4 city has a high chance of receiving an earthquake. Gurugram is also on seismic fault lines, making it one of the riskiest areas in Delhi-NCR. If these become active, it can cause a quake of 7.5 magnitude.

I would like to request Chief Minister ML Khattar to look into the matter at the earliest and take relevant measures before a tragedy strikes the millennium city. We should all learn a lesson from The Turkey-Syria Quakes and make a move well in time.

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As told to Deepti Sharma

Turkey Deployed NDRF Rescue Team Arrives In India

Turkey Deployed NDRF Rescue Team Arrives In India

By LokMarg

The forty-seven-member team of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) arrived in the country on Friday after conducting the 10-day-long rescue operation in the earthquake hit Turkey.

The NDRF team has come back along with the dog squad members Rambo and Honey.

Talking to ANI, Sub-Inspector of NDRF, Shivani Agrawal said that the team worked to help the affected persons and also extended them emotional support.

“My whole team has returned. The team included five women as well. The earthquake has devastated Turkey and the situation is very serious. We have worked as a team to help the affected persons and supported them emotionally,” NDRF Sub-Inspector Shivani Agrawal said.

The NDRF personnel were warmly welcomed at Adana Airpot after they returned from rescue and search operations in various earthquake-hit areas of Turkey.

The team had made an all-out effort to save lives and find a living soul in the rubble at the disaster site at Nurdagi and in different parts of Turkey which were badly affected by the earthquake on February 6.

A six-story building collapsed and turned into rubble at the Nurdagi site where the NDRF conducted search and rescue operations after the locals informed NDRF about surviving victims inside the debris, dog squad members Julie and Romeo were tasked to locate the surviving victims.

The specially trained Labrador breed dog squad, which is an expert in sniffing and other key skills during rescue operations in disaster-hit regions, left India on Tuesday for Turkey with two separate teams of NDRF– a 51-member team which arrived there in the morning and another 50-member team which reached by the evening.

While India’s National Disaster Response Force miraculously rescued a six-year-old girl and made headlines, a lot of the credit for the daring rescue ought to be reserved for ‘Romeo’ and ‘Julie’, part of the NDRF’s dog squad.

Romeo and Julie succeeded where machines failed. The dog squad was instrumental in detecting the little girl’s whereabouts under tonnes of rubble. Without their help, the little girl could not have survived.

India announced ‘Operation Dost’ shortly after the magnitude 7.8 quake-ravaged Turkey and sent a team from the Indian Army to set up 60 Para Field Hospital and the NDRF for search and rescue operations, including relief and humanitarian assistance to the ‘Dost’ country.

As Turkey continues to grapple with life in the aftermath of the earthquakes, help has been pouring in from all over the world. India has also sent relief material to Turkey and also dispatched National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team to assist in the rescue operations.

The death toll from the earthquakes in Turkey and northwestern Syria has surpassed 41,000 as rescue efforts continue, Voice of America (VOA) reported.

Meanwhile, Union Health Ministry has provided life-saving humanitarian medical Assistance to quake-hit Turkey and Syria under ‘Operation Dost.’ Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare Mansukh Mandaviya said that India is helping Turkey and Syria with medical equipment, and critical care drugs.

Taking to his official Twitter handle, Mansukh Mandaviya stated, “India is helping Syria and Turkey with the concept of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. @MoHFW_India provided life-saving emergency medicines, protective items, medical equipment, critical care drugs, etc as part of India’s efforts to provide humanitarian assistance to Turkey and Syria.” (ANI)

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Operation Dost: Sixth Flight Reaches Turkey With Relief Assistance

Operation Dost: Sixth Flight Reaches Turkey With Relief Assistance

By LokMarg

The sixth plane from India carrying rescue personnel, essentials, and medical equipment for earthquake relief efforts have reached Turkey, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Thursday.

The sixth flight carries more rescue teams, dog squads, and essential medicines for the quake- hit country.
Taking to Twitter, Jaishankar wrote, “The sixth #OperationDost flight reaches Turkiye. More search and rescue teams, dog squads, essential search & access equipment, medicines and medical equipment ready for deployment in the relief efforts.”

On his official Twitter handle, the EAM posted pictures of a field hospital in Turkey where medical experts are preparing to treat emergencies.

Following the deadly earthquakes on February 6 the death toll in Turkey and adjoining Syria have surpassed 15,000 lives in both countries.

“This field hospital in Hatay, Turkiye will treat those affected by the earthquake. Our team of medical & critical care specialists and equipment are preparing to treat emergencies,” Jaishankar wrote on Twitter.

Earlier on Wednesday, the Official Spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs, Arindam Bagchi said that the field hospital under ‘OperationDost’ has been set up at Iskenderun, Hatay province in Turkiye by the Indian Army.

India is providing assistance to Turkey through the ongoing crisis after earthquakes jolted the country on February 6.

Turkey’s Ambassador to India Firat Sunel has described ‘Operation Dost’ as a “very important operation” and demonstrated the friendship between the two nations.

Firat Sunel made the remarks at the Hindon Airbase in Ghaziabad from where Indian Air Force’s C17 Globemaster aircraft with the NDRF team, medical equipment, relief equipment, took off for Turkey, as part of the ongoing ‘Operation Dost.’ He said, “Operation Dost is a symbolic operation. It already proves that we are friends. We have to deepen our relations.”

Speaking to ANI, Firat Sunel said, “Operation Dost is a very important operation. And this is the operation of friendship because DOST is the word in Hindi and Turkish which means friends. And this operation shows our friendship between India and Turkey and friends always help each other.

“Union Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan, who was also present at the Hindon Airbase, has said that India stands ready to extend support to the people of
earthquake
-hit Turkey.

Speaking to ANI, Muraleedharan said that there are four teams working on the ground in Turkey, including two rescue teams, dog squads and two medical teams. He said that India has already opened a field hospital in Turkey.

The earthquake of magnitude 7.7 on the Richter scale ripped through Turkey and Syria on February 6, followed by a series of aftershocks that caused huge devastation, loss of lives and damage to infrastructure in the two countries. (ANI)

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Operation Dost: Sixth Flight Reaches Turkey With Relief Assistance

Operation Dost, India Sends Humanitarian Assistance To Turkey, Syria

By LokMarg

India is providing materials, supplies, medical supplies, and equipment, to Syria as well as sending search and rescue teams to Turkey under ‘Operation Dost’, said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday.

The search for survivors of the terrible earthquake that shook Turkey and Syria on Monday continues on Wednesday. Foreign aid from multiple countries has started arriving in the region.
“Under #OperationDost, India is sending search and rescue teams, a field hospital, materials, medicines and equipment to Turkiye and Syria. This is an ongoing operation and we would be posting updates,” Jaishankar tweeted.

According to aid organisations and rescuers, the number of fatalities is expected to rise as many people are still buried beneath the wreckage.

The Turkey-Syria earthquake death toll currently stands at 9,487, CNN reported citing officials as rescue operations continue in the disaster-hit countries. India dispatched its fourth batch of aid, including 54 members of the medical team from the Indian Army as part of the country’s Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief on Tuesday.

Recently, over 6 tons of emergency relief assistance reached Syria and was received at the Damascus airport by Deputy Minister of Local Administration and Environment Moutaz Douaji. It included 3 truck-loads of protective gear, emergency use medicines, ECG machines and other medical items, the Ministry of External Affairs said in an official statement.

In the wake of a tragic earthquake that struck North-Western Syria on 6 February 2022 causing massive destruction and loss of precious lives, India dispatched 6 tons of emergency relief assistance through a special aircraft of the Indian Airforce to Syria.

“The consignment was handed over by Cd’A of India to Syria Shri S. K. Yadav to the Deputy Minister of Local Administration and Environment of Syria Mr Moutaz Douaji at Damascus Airport today morning. The consignment consists of emergency medicines and equipment including portable ECG machines, patient monitors and other essential medical items,” the official statement read.

India over the years has been extending humanitarian, technical and developmental assistance to Syria through bilateral and multilateral channels. Consignments of food and medicines have been supplied to Syria from time to time, including during the pandemic.

Two Artificial Limb Fitment Camps (Jaipur Foot) have been organized in Syria in December 2020 and recently in October-November 2022, the press release read. (ANI)

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Turkey Earthquakes: Death Toll Surpasses 7,900-Mark

Turkey Earthquakes: Death Toll Surpasses 7,900-Mark

By LokMarg

The death toll from the earthquakes that jolted Turkey and Syria has risen to at least 7,726, CNN reported. At least 42,259 people have been injured in Turkey and Syria after deadly earthquakes.

Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay said that at least 5,894 people have died and 34,810 others have been injured in Turkey after earthquakes that jolted the country on Monday. At least 1,832 people have died and 3,849 others have been injured in Syria, as per the CNN report.
Orhan Tatar, Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Agency’s general director (AFAD), said that at least 5,775 buildings collapsed after an earthquake hit Turkey on Monday, as per the news report. On Tuesday, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said that around 7,500 Turkish soldiers are working in the earthquake-affected region to assist with rescue operations.

Hulusi Akar also said an additional 1,500 personnel will join the team on Wednesday. Hulusi Akar said that 75 military aircraft have been dispatched to the region, as per the CNN report. He added that nine commando battalions have arrived in the region from the west and four commando battalions from Cyprus will arrive in the region as well.

On Tuesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared a three-month state of emergency in 10 southern provinces which were hit by massive quakes, Anadolu Agency reported.

While addressing the State Information Coordination Center in the capital Ankara, Erdogan said, “Based on the authority given to us by Article 119 of the Constitution, we decided to declare a state of emergency.”

“We will quickly complete the presidential and parliamentary processes about the state of emergency decision, which will cover 10 provinces where earthquakes have occurred and will last for three months,” he added.

Erdogan’s remarks came after the 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck the Pazarcik district of Kahramanmaras province on Monday. Later, a 7.6 magnitude quake centered in Kahramanmaras’s Elbistan district rocked the region, affecting several other provinces, including Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, and Gaziantep, as per the Anadolu Agency report.

The third earthquake of magnitude 6.0 hit Goksun, Turkey on Monday, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said. The earthquake was also felt in several countries in the region, including Syria and Lebanon.

In his remarks, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, “Both earthquakes were experienced at a distance of 7 kilometers on earth that exponentially increased the severity of the destruction,” Anadolu Agency reported.

He further said, “It has caused great destruction in a very wide area compared to their counterparts. Therefore, we are faced with one of the biggest disasters not only in our Republic’s history but also in our geography and the world.”

As per the Anadolu Agency report, Erdogan emphasized that considering the devastating effect of the earthquake, they ordered expert personnel and vehicles from all over the country to immediately move to the region. He stated that despite the difficulties caused by the weather conditions, the teams struggled selflessly to reach the disaster region and participate in the work. (ANI)

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Turkey Quakes: Seven Days Of National Mourning

Turkey Quakes: Seven Days Of National Mourning

By LokMarg

Turkey has declared seven days of national mourning after earthquakes jolted southern provinces of the country. At least 1,541 people were killed and 9733 others were injured when two earthquakes hit southern provinces of Turkey on Monday, Anadolu Agency reported citing Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay.

An earthquake of magnitude 7.7, centered in the Pazarcik district, jolted Kahramanmaras and hit several provinces, including Gaziantep, Sanliurfa, Diyarbakir, Adana, Adiyaman, Malatya, Osmaniye, Hatay, and Kilis, as per the Anadolu Agency report.
Later, an earthquake of magnitude 7.6 centered in Kahramanmaras’s Elbistan district jolted the region. Fuat Oktay said that earthquakes had a total of 145 aftershocks and 3,741 buildings collapsed, as per the news report. The earthquake was also felt in several neighboring countries, including Lebanon and Syria.

Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) said that nearly 9700 search and rescue personnel have been working in the region, as per the news report. According to AFAD, there is no tsunami threat to the Eastern Mediterranean coasts in Turkey.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Turkey was shaken by the “biggest disaster” since the 1939 Erzincan earthquake. Erdogan spoke to the mayors of Adana, Osmaniye, Hatay, and Kilis on the phone and was informed about search and rescue efforts, according to the Turkish presidency, as per the Anadolu Agency report.

Turkey’s National Education Minister Mahmut Ozer said education in Turkey is suspended until February 13. Meanwhile, Turkey’s Youth and Sports Minister Mehmet Kasapoglu said all national sports events in the country have been suspended until further notice, according to an Anadolu Agency report.

AFAD in a statement said that Turkey issued a level 4 alarm, which includes a call for international aid. AFAD said that international assistance was called for through the Emergency Response Coordination Center (ERCC) after a discussion with the Turkish Foreign Ministry, as per the news report.

The death toll in Syria due to the earthquake has reached 237 deaths and 639 injured, mostly in Lattakia, Aleppo, Hama, and Tartous, SANA reported. As per the news report, Syria has called on United Nations member states and other international organizations to help support the efforts made by the Syrian government to face the effects of the earthquake that jolted the nation. (ANI)

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