EERI's Learning from Earthquakes Program and the Geotechnical Extreme Events Reconnaissance (GEER) Association invite you to a FREE reconnaissance briefing webinar on the 2023 Kahramanmaraş earthquake sequence in Turkey. On February 6, 2023, a M7.8 earthquake occurred in southern Turkey near the northern border of Syria, followed about 9 hours later by a M7.5 earthquake approximately 90 km to the north of the first. The impacts of these earthquakes on both countries were devastating. The number of fatalities has risen to more than 50,000. According to Turkish government sources, more than 200,000 buildings collapsed or suffered damage severe enough to require demolition. Over a million people have been displaced as a result.
A joint EERI-GEER advance reconnaissance team conducted field visits in the disaster zone in southern Turkey from February 15-20. The team traveled over 1,500 km in the regions affected, first along a north-to-south path, and then east-to-west in the southern third of the region. They collected perishable geotechnical data, made observations of structural damage, and assessed needs and opportunities for future reconnaissance.
The four members of the team will present initial findings on topics including surface fault rupture and liquefaction, often combined, impacts to structures and lifelines, and emergency response. As the team was unable to visit Syria, the webinar will focus on impacts in Turkey.
Speakers:
Özgür Kozacı, Mott MacDonald.
Robb Moss, California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo
Ayşe Hortacsu, Applied Technology Council
Ayhan İrfanoğlu, Purdue University