Prof., who is also a board member of the KTÜ Landslide Application Research Center. Dr. Hakan Ersoy made a statement about the earthquakes in the Black Sea in recent months.
Recalling that a magnitude 4.7 earthquake occurred in Hemşin District of Rize on November 15, 2024, Ersoy said that the occurrence of such an earthquake, which was not recorded but existed, worried them.
Explaining that after earthquakes, secondary disasters come to mind, Ersoy said, “Especially when we say that after earthquakes, secondary disasters, landslides, rockfalls and similar disasters come to mind. If there is an increase in these disasters, we are working on it.”
Drawing attention to the earthquakes that occurred in Trabzon on January 5th with a magnitude of 3.2 and on January 9th with a magnitude of 3.4, Ersoy continued his words as follows:
“It’s repetitive stress. In other words, you can constantly be exposed to different vibrations. We know that under normal conditions, one of the main causes of landslides and rockfalls is both artificial and natural vibrations, as well as precipitation.” Recently, this has had a negative impact, especially in the Eastern Black Sea region. The impact of earthquakes definitely causes landslides and rock falls, but we have started to investigate whether earthquakes in Trabzon since last year directly lead to landslides or floods. “We will try to achieve the end result.”
“Earthquake intensity varies depending on the subsurface”
Prof. Dr. Ersoy also provided information about the relationship between fill areas and the intensity of the earthquake, saying: “The intensity of an earthquake varies depending on the soil. The strength does not change, but the intensity obviously varies depending on the soil type. There is a concept called soil reinforcement. Therefore, the effects of vibration in a rock environment and the effects of vibration in a filled environment are very different. “We feel different,” he said.
Ersoy pointed out that a significant part of the settlements in the Eastern Black Sea provinces are located in the coastal zone, saying:
“If we look at it today, we have started building almost half of the settlements in these low-lying areas on the filled areas. Therefore, we may not have experienced the effects of vibrations in recent years, but we have. Because earthquakes often have a greater impact on the filled areas than on the rock masses due to the increase in ground level.”
Ersoy pointed out that structural measures are very important to avoid negative consequences.
“Smaller earthquakes in the region can trigger subsequent disasters.”
Dokuz Eylül University, Faculty of Engineering, Department of Geology, Lecturer, Center for Earthquake Research and Application (DAUM), Director, Prof. Dr. Hasan Sözbilir also explained that when looking at the instrumental earthquakes of the last 125 years, it was found that the Eastern Black Sea region had lower earthquake activity than other regions.
Sözbilir drew attention to the recently obtained geological and geomorphological data and made the following assessment:
“However, recent studies carried out particularly along the Sinop-Artvin zone have collected geological and geomorphological data on the existence of faults with low slip rates, but which can be considered as potentially active faults in the areas close to the Eastern Black. “ In addition, marine geology studies were carried out in the Black Sea region between Samsun and Trabzon in the map of active faults Türkiye, which is renewed in this context. “If it is processed, it is expected that the seismic hazard level of our provinces in the Eastern Black Sea region will change.”
Prof. Dr. Regarding the earthquakes in Trabzon and Rize in recent months, Sözbilir said: “Although small earthquakes of magnitude 3 to 4 occurring in the region are not destructive in nature, they can cause secondary disasters. For this reason, secondary disasters.” Locations in the region should be determined in advance and such disasters should be prevented. “I think prevention efforts should be accelerated,” he said.
Bir yanıt yazın