‘Turks not prepared for possible quakes’

ISTANBUL- Hürriyet Daily News

More than 600 people lost their lives in recent 7.2 magnitude Van earthquake. AA photo

A recent study on earthquake-proof homes and the precautions people take to protect themselves from seismic damage indicates that 70 percent of Turks have made no preparations for a temblor.

The investigation, which was conducted by A&G Research, revealed that a further 47 percent believed that an earthquake was the “will of God.”

According to the findings, 83 percent of participants said the buildings they lived in had not been inspected for earthquake-preparedness. Only 12.9 percent of participants in the Marmara region said their buildings had been strengthened to withstand a temblor, but the results were even lower in the Aegean, Central Anatolian and eastern regions.

The research also showed that 80 percent of the participants said they did not check the quake-resistance quality of a building when looking to buy or rent a flat. Forty percent of participants said their buildings were resistant to a possible quake, while 32.5 percent said their homes were not.

However, many said taking necessary safety precautions could help protect them from harm.

The study was conducted among residents in 3,267 dwellings in 44 provinces across the country.

INSURER SEARCHING FOR VICTIMS

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

The Turkish Catastrophe Insurance Pool (DASK) has been struggling to dole out relief to insurance holders in the eastern province of Van because so many residents fled the area following two large earthquakes, according to reports. “A large majority of insurance holders have left Van. Even though we’ve calculated the damages to be paid, we can’t find the people we need to make the payments to,” DASK Executive Board Director Selamet Yazıcı told daily Hürriyet.

Yazıcı said they had received 5,800 insurance claims following the earthquakes of Oct. 23 and Nov. 9. Some 90 percent of the claims are from the province of Van while the rest are from neighboring regions.

DASK will likely be able to provide insurance relief to a little over 4,000 homeowners, Yazıcı said, adding that this would total roughly 50 million to 80 million Turkish Liras.

The organization does not receive its funding from the government’s budget, but rather from its own sources, including funds from abroad. In the event of a single large earthquake, DASK has enough resources to provide 5.5 billion dollars in disaster insurance, it said.