Istanbul shaken: Earthquake emergency and huge damage threaten!

Istanbul shaken: Earthquake emergency and huge damage threaten!

On Wednesday afternoon, April 26, 2025, Istanbul was shaken by a strong earthquake of the strength 6.2. This nature event already led to considerable damage. According to the Turkish urban ministry Murat Kurum, over 6,500 buildings were damaged in the metropolis. The situation in the city continues to come to a head, as there was a nomination on Friday evening, which many residents drove out of their houses, especially in endangered districts.

The fear of further earthquets is great. Many people therefore spend the nights on green areas and in parks to protect themselves from the possible consequences of a stronger quake. Experts have long warned of the probability of an earthquake in Istanbul with a strength of over 7. The experts see the risks as increased, while the city has to fight with considerable defects in preparation for such natural disasters.

Future of the earthquake provision

The topics of the earthquake provision and history in Europe are becoming more important. A current analysis of the earthquake provision in Switzerland shows that preparations for such disasters are based on risk models. These models are determined by the Swiss engineering and architectural association (SIA), which is based on a national risk assessment that was last updated in 2015.

The national earthquake risk model, which is currently being drawn up by the Swiss earthworks in cooperation with the Federal Office for the Environment and the Federal Office for the Population Protection, is to be published in 2023. This model will show the expected earthquake damage in Switzerland in detail and serve as a reference for nationwide risk analyzes. In the meantime, the European model will be useful for risk assessment for cross -border comparisons.

special risks in Switzerland

Current analyzes show that Basel and Geneva represent special high -risk areas in Switzerland. Basel has a high density of residents and real assets as well as many vulnerable buildings. Geneva, on the other hand, has a deeper earthquake risk, but the building stock is often of poor quality and on a weak surface, which increases the risk. The differences between the European and national hazard models have been explored in recent studies, whereby it was found that Swiss cities are rather small in international comparison, which influences the risk assessment.

Overall, the calculations of possible victims rank from several ten thousand to hundreds of thousands in a future quake in Istanbul. This illustrates the urgency of the earthquake prevention and awareness, both in Turkey and in Europe.

For more information about the current situation and the earthquake in Europe, read Kleine Zeitung and ETH Zurich.