List of earthquakes in Turkey (Redirected from Earthquakes in Turkey)

Map of earthquakes in Turkey, 1900–2023
Map of plate boundaries affecting Turkey

Turkey has had many earthquakes. This list includes any notable historical earthquakes that have epicenters within the current boundaries of Turkey, or which caused significant effects in this area. Overall, the population in major cities like Istanbul resides in structures that are a mix of vulnerable and earthquake resistant construction.

Tectonic setting

Turkey is a seismically active area within the complex zone of collision between the Eurasian Plate and both the African and Arabian Plates. Much of the country lies on the Anatolian Plate, a small plate bounded by two major strike-slip fault zones, the North Anatolian Fault and East Anatolian Fault. The western part of the country is also affected by the zone of extensional tectonics in the Aegean Sea caused by the southward migration of the Hellenic arc. The easternmost part of Turkey lies on the western end of the Zagros fold and thrust belt, which is dominated by thrust tectonics.

Seismic hazard

Seismic hazard in Turkey is highest along the plate boundaries, but there is a significant risk of damaging earthquakes almost anywhere in the country. Seismic maps that show risk have changed through time.

Buildings

In earthquake-prone areas, all buildings built to 20th century standards may be dangerous, but shortly after the 1999 İzmit earthquake, which killed over 17 thousand people, a new seismic code was brought into force to protect against earthquakes in Turkey. Also following that earthquake a so-called earthquake tax was raised during the government of Bülent Ecevit. Initially thought as a temporary tax, it became permanent. The aim of the tax is to prepare for earthquake related damage.[need quotation to verify] In 2007 the seismic code was strengthened. However, it is alleged that builders often ignored the rules due to corruption. After the 2011 Van earthquakes Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said: "Municipalities, constructors and supervisors should now see that their negligence amounts to murder." In 2018, a zoning law gave amnesties to some unlicensed buildings and some with unlicensed floors.

Further resilience over the 2007 code was mandated in the 2018 Turkish Seismic Code, which took effect on 1 January 2019. Improvements included design supervision and site specific hazard definitions, and for new buildings in vulnerable regions required rebar in high quality concrete. Beams and columns in those buildings must be in the right place to properly absorb shaking. The code is said by foreign experts to be very modern and similar to US codes. However, these 21st century building codes were not very well enforced.

In a bid to shore up support going into the 2018 Turkish presidential election, the government offered amnesties for violations of the building code, allowing non-compliance to continue with the payment of a fee. This poor enforcement of seismic codes was a contributing factor to the devastation of the 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes in which over 42,000 people died in Turkey. There were high incidences of support column failure leading to pancake collapses, which complicated rescue efforts. Experts lamented the practice would turn cities into graveyards. The 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquake collapsed many older buildings and some recent ones: the Environment and Urbanization Ministry is assessing the damage.

Unreinforced masonry buildings are vulnerable. Many older buildings in Istanbul are vulnerable to pancake collapses. Retrofitting old buildings is possible but expensive. Although over 3 million housing units nationwide were strengthened in the 2 decades before 2023, as of that year many apartment blocks do not meet 21st century standards. Building with wood has been suggested.

List of notable earthquakes

Historical earthquakes in Turkey (before 1900)

Date Time‡ Place Lat Long Deaths Mag. Comments Sources
17 CE n/a Philadelphia (Alaşehir) 38.21 28.31 n/a n/a see AD 17 Lydia earthquake
13 December 115 Antioch 36.1 36.1 260,000 7.5 Ms see 115 Antioch earthquake
4 January 141 (or 142) Lycia, Caria, Dodecanese 36.7 28.0 n/a VIII Triggered a severe tsunami that caused inundation at Rhodes; see 141 Lycia earthquake
21 December 262 South and west coasts of Anatolia 36.5 27.8 n/a IX Damaged many buildings at Ephesus and triggered a tsunami that hit coastal cities; see 262 Southwest Anatolia earthquake
26 January 447 Night Bithynia, Thrace, Byzantine Empire 41.008 28.978 Unknown IX Date uncertain, severely damaged the Theodosian walls in Constantinople see 447 Constantinople earthquake
19 May 526 Antioch 250,000 VIII The city of Antioch was greatly damaged, and some decades later the city's population was just 300,000. see 526 Antioch earthquake
15 August 554 Anatolia The earthquake severely damaged the city of Tralles (modern Aydın) and the island of Kos; See 554 Anatolia earthquake
14 December 557 just before midnight Constantinople 40.9 28.7 n/a X (Intense) Constantinople was "almost completely razed to the ground" by the earthquake. see 557 Constantinople earthquake
14 May 1269 Cilicia, Anatolia 37.5 35.5 60,000 ~7 see 1269 Cilicia earthquake
10 September 1509 Constantinople 40.9 28.7 10,000 7.2 Mw see 1509 Constantinople earthquake
May 1598 Amasya and Çorum 40.6 35.4 60,000 6.7 Ms see 1598 Amasya–Çorum earthquake
23 February 1653 Smyrna 38.2 28.2 2,500 7.5 see 1653 East Smyrna earthquake
17 August 1668 Anatolia 40 36 8,000 8 see 1668 North Anatolia earthquake
10 July 1688 11:45 Smyrna 38.4 26.9 16,000 7.0 Ms see 1688 Smyrna earthquake
22 May 1766 05:10 Istanbul 40.8 29.0 4,000 7.1 Ms see 1766 Istanbul earthquake
5 August 1766 Dardanelles 40.6 27.0 5,000 7.4 Mw see 1766 Marmara earthquake
23 July 1784 Erzincan 39.5 40.2 5,000–>10,000 7.6 Ms see 1784 Erzincan earthquake
2 July 1840 Ağrı 39.6 44.1 10,000 7.4 Ms May have triggered the last eruption of Mount Ararat. Casualties associated with a large landslide on the volcano.
see 1840 Ahora earthquake
28 February 1855 01:00 Bursa 40.2 29.1 1,900 6.7 see 1855 Bursa earthquake
2 June 1859 10:30 Erzurum 39.9 41.3 15,000 6.1 Ms see 1859 Erzurum earthquake
12 May 1866 Bingöl 39.2 41.0 680+ 7.2 Ms see 1866 Bingöl earthquake
3 April 1872 Hatay 36.4 36.4 1,800 7.2 Ms see 1872 Amik earthquake
3 April 1881 11:30 Chios, Çeşme, Alaçatı 38.25 26.25 7,866 7.3 Mw see 1881 Chios earthquake
10 October 1883 13:30 Çeşme, Izmir, Ayvalık 38.3 26.2 53–120 7.3 Ms see 1883 Çeşme earthquake
10 July 1894 12:24 Gulf of İzmit 40.73 29.25 1,300 7.0 see 1894 Istanbul earthquake
20 September 1899 04:00 Büyük Menderes Graben 37.9 28.1 1,470 7.1 see 1899 Aydın–Denizli earthquake

1900–1999

Date Time‡ Place Lat Long Deaths Mag. Comments Sources
29 April 1903 01:46 local time Malazgirt 39.14 42.65 600 6.7 Ms see 1903 Manzikert earthquake
9 August 1912 03:29 local time Mürefte 40.75 27.2 216 7.3 MS see 1912 Mürefte earthquake
4 October 1914 00:07 local time Burdur 37.82 30.27 2,344 6.9 MS see 1914 Burdur earthquake
18 November 1919 00:54 local time Balıkesir 39.18 27.65 3,000 7.0 Mw see 1919 Ayvalık earthquake
13 September 1924 16:34 local time Horasan 40.0 42.1 60 6.8 see 1924 Pasinler earthquake
22 October 1926 21:59 local time Kars 40.7 43.7 360 6.0 Ms see 1926 Kars earthquake
31 March 1928 02:29 local time Smyrna 38.5 28.0 50 6.5 MS Possible M=6.2 foreshock previous day
18 May 1929 08:37 local time Suşehri 40.2 37.9 64 6.1 Ms
7 May 1930 00:34 local time Hakkâri 38.1 44.7 2,514 7.2–7.5 Ms see 1930 Salmas earthquake
4 January 1935 16:41 local time Erdek 40.4 27.5 5 6.4 Ms
19 April 1938 12:59 local time Kırşehir 39.1 34.0 160 6.6 MS see 1938 Kırşehir earthquake
22 September 1939 02:36 local time Dikili 39.1 26.8 60 6.6 MS
26 December 1939 23:57 Erzincan 39.77 39.53 32,700 7.8 Mw see 1939 Erzincan earthquake
15 November 1942 19:01 local time Bigadiç 39.2 28.2 16 6.1 MS
20 December 1942 14:03 Erbaa 40.87 36.47 3,000 7.0 Ms see 1942 Niksar–Erbaa earthquake
20 June 1943 17:32 local time Hendek 40.6 30.5 336 6.6 MS see 1943 Adapazarı–Hendek earthquake
26 November 1943 22:20 Ladik 40.87 33.65 2,824–5,000 7.5 Mw see 1943 Tosya–Ladik earthquake
1 February 1944 03:25 Gerede 40.8 32.2 3,959 7.5 see 1944 Bolu–Gerede earthquake
6 October 1944 04:34 local time Ayvalık 39.37 26.53 30 6.8 MS see 1944 Gulf of Edremit–Ayvacik earthquake
17 August 1949 Karlıova 39.54 40.57 450 6.8 see 1949 Karlıova earthquake
13 August 1951 18:36 Kurşunlu 40.88 32.87 50 6.9 see 1951 Kurşunlu earthquake
3 January 1952 08:03 local time Hasankale 39.9 41.7 41 5.8 see 1952 Hasankale earthquake
18 March 1953 21:06 local time Yenice 40.02 27.53 265 7.2 MS see 1953 Yenice–Gönen earthquake
16 July 1955 09:07 local time Söke 37.55 27.05 23 6.8 MS
22 February 1956 22:31 local time Eskişehir 39.89 30.49 1 6.4 Ms
25 April 1957 04:25 local time Fethiye 36.5 28.6 67 7.1 MS see 1957 Fethiye earthquakes
26 May 1957 6:36 Abant 40.67 31.00 52 7.1 see 1957 Abant earthquake
6 October 1964 16:31 local time Manyas 40.1 27.93 23 7.0 MS see 1964 Manyas earthquake
19 August 1966 12:23 Varto 39.17 41.56 2,394 6.8 Mw see 1966 Varto earthquake
22 July 1967 16:56 Mudurnu 40.67 30.69 89 7.2 see North Anatolian Fault
3 September 1968 10:19 local time Bartın 41.79 32.31 29 6.5 MS see 1968 Bartın earthquake
28 March 1969 03:48 local time Alaşehir 38.5 28.4 53 6.5 MS see 1969 Alaşehir earthquake
28 March 1970 23:02 local time Gediz 39.2 29.5 1,086 7.2 MS see 1970 Gediz earthquake
12 may 1971 08:25 local time Burdur 37.5 29.9 57 6.1 MS
22 May 1971 16:44 Bingöl 38.83 40.52 755 6.9 Mw see 1971 Bingöl earthquake
6 September 1975 12:20 local time Lice 38.5 40.7 2,311 6.6 MS see 1975 Lice earthquake
24 November 1976 14:22 local time Muradiye 39.12 44.03 4,000 7.5 MS see 1976 Çaldıran–Muradiye earthquake
25 March 1977 Palu 38.728 40.088 30 5.2 Mw
30 October 1983 07:12 local time Erzurum 40.33 42.19 1,342 6.9 MS see 1983 Erzurum earthquake
13 March 1992 17.18 Erzincan 39.70 39.69 498 6.7 Mw see 1992 Erzincan earthquake
1 October 1995 17:57 local time Dinar 38.06 30.13 90 6.1 MS see 1995 Dinar earthquake
27 June 1998 16:55 local time Ceyhan 36.88 35.31 146 6.3 Mw see 1998 Adana–Ceyhan earthquake
17 August 1999 03:02 local time İzmit 40.77 30 17,127–18,373 7.6 Mw see 1999 Gölcük earthquake
12 November 1999 18:57 local time Düzce 40.75 31.16 894 7.2 Mw (PDE Monthly Listing); see 1999 Düzce earthquake USGS

2000–present

Date Time‡ Place Lat Long Deaths Mag. Comments Sources
3 February 2002 07:11 Afyon 38.573 31.271 44 6.5 Mw (HRV); see 2002 Afyon earthquake
27 January 2003 05:26 Pülümür 39.46 39.79 1 6.1 Mw (HRV, USGS) USGS
1 May 2003 00:27 Bingöl 39.01 40.46 177 6.4 Mw (HRV, USGS); see 2003 Bingöl earthquake
2 July 2004 01:30 Ağrı 39.71 44.02 18 5.1 Mw (HRV); see 2004 Doğubayazıt earthquake
8 March 2010 02:32 Elazığ 38.79 40.03 41 6.1 Mw (HRV); see 2010 Elazığ earthquake
19 May 2011 23:15 Kütahya 39.14 29.07 2 5.8 Mw (HRV); see 2011 Kütahya earthquake
23 October 2011 13:41 Van 38.63 43.49 604 7.2 Mw (HRV); see 2011 Van earthquakes
9 November 2011 19:23 Van 38.42 43.22 40 5.6 Mw (HRV): see 2011 Van earthquakes
02014-05-2424 May 2014 12:25 local time Imbros 40.31 25.45 0 6.9 Mw (HRV); see 2014 Aegean Sea earthquake
21 July 2017 01:31 local time Bodrum 36.92 27.41 2 (in the Greek island of Kos) 6.6 Mw (HRV); see 2017 Aegean Sea earthquake
02019-09-2626 September 2019 13:59 local time Marmara Region 40.89 28.17 1 5.7 Mw (HRV); see 2019 Istanbul earthquake
02019-09-2624 January 2020 20:55 local time Elazığ, Malatya 38.390 39.081 41 6.7 Mw (HRV); see 2020 Elazığ earthquake
02019-09-2623 February 2020 08:53 local time Iran–Turkey border 38.3943 44.3405 10 5.8 Mw (HRV); see 2020 Iran–Turkey earthquakes
19:00 local time 38.3943 44.3405 6.0 Mw
14 June 2020 16:24 local time Bingöl 39.42 40.67 1 5.9 Mw see 2020 Bingöl earthquake
30 October 2020 14:51 local time Aegean Sea 37.918 26.790 117 7.0 Mw see 2020 Aegean Sea earthquake
23 November 2022 04:08 local time Düzce 40.847 30.967 2 6.1 Mw see 2022 Düzce earthquake
6 February 2023 04:17 local time Kahramanmaraş 37.112 37.119 59,259 (50,783 in Turkey, 8,476 in Syria) 7.8 Mw see 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes
13:24 local time 38.036 37.229 7.5-7.7 Mw
20 February 2023 20:04 local time Defne 36.1133 36.082 11 (6 in Turkey, 5 in Syria) 6.3 Mw
27 February 2023 12:04 local time Yeşilyurt 38.2535 38.2932 2 5.2 Mw

See also


This page was last updated at 2023-10-29 07:32 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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