Another risky factory sealed after the disaster in Dilovası: After exactly 40 months...

In the Dilovası district of Kocaeli, seven workers, including three children, lost their lives in a fire that broke out on November 8 at an unlicensed factory owned by Ravive Kozmetik. Inspections conducted after the fire revealed that safety measures at the factory were inadequate and that workers were employed without social security. Following the incident, it was learned that the Aksu Recycling Facility, which is adjacent to the factory where the fire occurred, was also operating without a license and has been sealed.

IT WAS REVEALED THAT THE AKSU RECYCLING FACILITY WAS OPERATING WITHOUT A LICENSE

The Aksu Recycling Facility, located next to the factory where the disaster took place, had been operating without authorization for a year. It was determined that the factory, whose license expired on November 14, 2024, also lacked a zoning permit. The recycling facility belongs to the Akvarsan Metal Recycling company. The factory was sealed by municipal teams following the fire.

Newly appointed Municipal Police Chief Çetin Polat stated that the factory was sealed because it was unlicensed but that he could not provide further information. However, it has emerged that the Aksu Recycling Facility had previously been brought to the agenda of the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM) and was a structure that posed a danger.

WARNINGS ISSUED TO THE BUSINESS OFFICIALS WERE IGNORED

Democracy and Progress Party (DEM) Kocaeli MP Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu had asked about the license and environmental impact of the Aksu Recycling Facility in a parliamentary question submitted to former Minister of Environment Mehmet Özhaseki on August 18, 2023. In the ministry's response, it was reported that the operating license was valid until November 14, 2024. However, the failure to inspect the factory after the license expired has led to officials being accused of negligence.

WARNINGS ISSUED TO NEIGHBORHOOD RESIDENTS

Following the fire, neighborhood residents expressed their concern that the factory might reopen. A citizen who wished to remain anonymous stated in an application to CİMER on October 1, 2023, "We cannot let our children outside. Our houses are back-to-back with the recycling factory, and we are directly at risk in the event of a bad incident. Please take steps that prioritize human life before more bad things happen."

"DID SOMEONE HAVE TO DIE?"

In a statement made on social media following the sealing, Gergerlioğlu reacted by saying, "Did a fire really have to break out in a perfume warehouse and 6 people have to die?" Gergerlioğlu stated, "The factory where we held a press conference 2 years ago on the same street as the warehouse fire in Dilovası was only closed yesterday. For 2 years, I had been explaining the damage the Aksu Metal Factory (Akvarsan Metal Recycling) was causing to the street. It was only after the fire that the Dilovası Municipality and the Ministry of Labor came to their senses. Where is the value placed on human life?"

News Source: 12punto