According to experts, the reason the tremor was felt strongly is related more to its location and depth than its magnitude. There are differing views on whether there is a fault line within the land in Istanbul.
While the earthquake was recorded as 2.6 magnitude by the Kandilli Observatory, no data or statement regarding the quake was included on the AFAD website.
IS THERE AN UNKNOWN FAULT LINE?
Situations where even small-scale earthquakes are felt have brought the question "Is there a fault line within the land?" in Istanbul back to the agenda. It was particularly noted that the earthquake occurred directly within land borders, not at sea.
Evaluating the subject, Disaster Management and Earthquake Expert Assoc. Prof. Dr. Bülent Özmen assessed the technical reasons for the tremor and the debates regarding the fault structure in Istanbul in a statement to the Posta newspaper.
“NOTHING TO BE AFRAID OF”
Stating that the tremor was felt more strongly because it was close to residential areas, Özmen used the following expressions:
“The 2.6-magnitude tremor was felt so strongly because it was within land borders and close to a residential area, but we cannot say that there is anything to be afraid of by looking at an earthquake of this magnitude. On the other hand, according to the active fault map published by MTA, there are no active faults within Istanbul's land borders, but according to some academic studies, there are some small-scale faults mapped within Istanbul's land borders as well. When we look at the past record of these, we see that they have not produced an earthquake with a magnitude exceeding 4. Therefore, we can say by looking at historical records that even if they are mapped, the fault lines within Istanbul's land borders do not have the potential to produce an earthquake larger than 4 or 4.5.”
News Source: 12punto
