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Information on Disaster Risk Reduction of the Member Countries
Turkey
General Information
Formal Name: Republic of Turkey
Turkey is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian peninsula in Western Asia, with a smaller portion on the Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. Turkey is bordered by Greece and Bulgaria to its northwest; Georgia to its northeast; Armenia, the Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhichevan and Iran to the east; and Iraq and Syria to the south, covering the area of 785,347 square kilometers with a total coastline of 8,430 km.
Istanbul is the largest city while Ankara is the capital. According to the results of the last 2016 Address Based Census, the population of Turkey is 82,003,882. Overview of Disasters
Due to its geological and topographic structure and climatic features, Turkey frequently faces natural disasters. Besides loss of lives, natural disasters also bring about significant economic loss for Turkey. Various natural disasters often occur in Turkey at various times. Earthquakes, floods, landslides, avalanches and rock falls are among the most frequent disasters experienced in Turkey.
Recent Major Disasters
Earthquake (17 August 1999)
The 7.4 magnitude earthquake on August 17, 1999 that centered around Golcuk in the province of Kocaeli with a succession of several major earthquakes killed 20,000 persons and injured 50,000 persons.
Earthquake (23 October 2011)
The earthquake of magnitude 7.1 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII occurred on 23 October 2011 in eastern Turkey near the city of Van. It killed 604 and injured 4,152 people. At least 11,232 buildings sustained damage in the region, 6,017 of which were found to be uninhabitable.
Flood (1998)
In 1998, in May and August there were floods in the Black Sea region and some 2.2 million persons over an area of 37,000 sq. km were affected. Although less than 100 people lost their lives.
Disaster Management System
Legal System
Because of the lessons learned from management and coordination problems in particular from the earthquake of 1999 and various subsequent disasters, the former post-disaster central-to-local crisis management mentality was replaced with pre-disaster mitigation activities and local-to-central risk management. In this framework, with the founding law passed in 2009, AFAD was established at the central level, with Disaster and Emergency Directorates attached to Governorates under Special Provincial Administrations established at the local level. Starting to work on its strategic plan following its founding, AFAD has extensively revised the draft strategy document in consideration of changes in higher experiences from the Van Earthquake and studies on social disorders taking place in various countries in the recent years.
Law No. 5902 on Organization and Functions of the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD)
Organization
Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD)