Aykut Barka, Naci Görür, and the Mediterranean Fault Line!

After people have perished, what use are groundbreaking ceremonies? 

On Friday night, we experienced an earthquake in Antalya that lasted about 10 seconds and was felt by many.  A few days ago, Naci Görür drew attention to Antalya on November 24, stating that there are 4 different fault lines passing near Antalya, that the fault line known as the Hellenic Arc in particular has not ruptured since 1856, and that it could generate an earthquake with a magnitude of 7 or greater. 

I find Naci Görür very similar to Prof. Dr. Aykut Barka, whom we lost at an early age. In the late 90s, he conducted important work at the TÜBİTAK Marmara Research Center, and his study on the North Anatolian Fault line, which he presented at the Paris Institute of Earth Sciences, had a major impact; Turkey learned about the risks of the North Anatolian Fault Line and the expected Gölcük earthquake from him first. Like Naci Hoca, Aykut Barka traveled all over Turkey, city by city, municipality by municipality, and warned local governments and the public that a rupture of the NAF was only a matter of time. 

He dedicated years to studying the North Anatolian Fault Line. Aykut Barka's name became synonymous with the NAF. He was recognized as the scientist who studied the North Anatolian Fault best. Unfortunately, his warnings were not heeded. I remember the days when his voice grew hoarse from explaining. He was a professor who was highly respected by the scientific community for his international work, which TV channels valued. A few months after Aykut Barka's warnings, the Gölcük earthquake occurred on August 17, 1999.  The earthquake lasted exactly 45 seconds. It was the longest 45 seconds on Earth! The Kandilli Observatory revised the magnitude of the earthquake to 7.4. In foreign sources, the magnitude was reported as 7.8. We never knew the true death toll, but we were confronted with the reality that Turkey is on a destructive earthquake belt. 

Immediately after the August 17 earthquake, the Ecevit Government established the Turkey Earthquake Council. Aykut Barka was elected co-chair of the Earthquake Council. Universities, local governments, and NGOs entered into a multidisciplinary study under the umbrella of the State. Building inspections were initiated. It was important for Building Inspection companies to be independent. The bribery mechanism was eliminated. Urban transformation was launched. Barka continued his research as a faculty member at the ITU Eurasia Institute of Earth Sciences. Barka and an international team consisting of Japanese experts stated that the probability of a major earthquake that would affect Istanbul and the 20 million people living there within the next 30 years was 62 percent. The next in line was the great Istanbul Earthquake. 

However, unfortunately, he succumbed to his 24-day intensive care battle due to a blockage in his brain vessels on February 1, 2002. Six years after Barka's passing, the National Earthquake Council was abolished by the AKP government. It was said that it had “lost its relevance.”

Prof. Dr. Naci Görür resigned from the Presidency of the TÜBİTAK Marmara Research Center (MAM) in protest of the government's policy regarding TÜBİTAK.

In the following years, we witnessed consecutive zoning amnesties being announced. When the earthquake, which had “lost its relevance,” reminded us of itself once again in a ruthless manner on February 6, the state was once again left under the weight of this confrontation. Officially, we lost 45 thousand of our people. We will never know how many people actually died. Naci Hoca had drawn attention to the East Anatolian Fault Line as much as the NAF, saying, “The Maraş Earthquake will definitely happen.”

However, neither the government nor the public wants to believe that major earthquakes remain relevant, and we brush aside the warnings of Naci Hoca and many other earth scientists.

Turkey's major cities, starting with Istanbul, the metropolis that feeds Turkey and pays the most taxes, as well as İzmir, Muğla, Adana, Eskişehir, and Antalya, are on fault lines that will produce a major earthquake! 

As I felt the earthquake in Antalya last night, I thought about this. Antalya is one of the tourism capitals of the world today. It doesn't matter if it's winter or summer. Tourists from all over the world flock to Antalya every month of the year. Why is the heart and center of the city, which hosts nearly 10 million tourists every year, so dilapidated and so old?

Why have Işıklar Street, Atatürk Street, Yüzüncü Yıl Street, and the historically significant Haşim İşcan Neighborhood been left so neglected?

Antalya reminds me of the state of Hatay before the earthquake.  40-year-old, 50-year-old, 7, 8, or even 10-story buildings are saying “welcome” to tourists!

Why hasn't it been addressed for all these years? 

I am sure every tourist who visits Kaleiçi asks this. 

Yesterday's 5.2 magnitude tremor once again reminded us that “the earthquake remains relevant.” 

Do cities have to be destroyed for buildings to be renewed? 

After people have perished, what use are groundbreaking ceremonies?