Tremors from the earthquake have been felt 109 times in the last 36 hours in Turkey in the Middle East. More than 4,300 people have died in Turkey and Syria from the earthquake. Many cities in Turkey and Syria have been turned into rubble. Cross-border earthquakes are back in the news after the damage caused by earthquakes in Turkey and Syria.
Transboundary earthquake means that the epicenter of the earthquake must be around the border of any two countries. Nepal and Tibet in 2015, while Iraq and Iran in 2017 were affected by cross-border earthquakes.
In this story we will know in detail why cross-border earthquakes are dangerous, but first let us know from scientists why earthquake tremors are felt again and again in Turkey…
1. Turkey located in the middle of three plates- Turkey is located between the Arabian, Anatolian and African plates. In such a situation, every time a plate slides, it collides with each other. Because of this earthquake tremors are felt there again and again.
According to British geologist Stephen Hicks, the Arabian Plate slips 11 cm each year. In such a situation, the load on the Anatolian plate increased. This time the reason for the earthquake is the Anatolian Plate.
2. Turkey rests on the Anatolian plate fault: British geologist David Rothery, speaking to the scientific journal Nature, said most of Turkey rests on 2 fault lines on the Anatolian plate. The first fault is in the north and the second in the east.
The reason for the earthquake is the slippage of the Anatolian plate in the eastern part of Turkey. Rothery explains: Every year the eastern part of the Anatolian plate was slipping by as much as 2 cm, which has now become much more.
On the other hand, the Syrian-Arabian tectonic plate repeatedly collides with the North Anatolian plate. There is a lot of space between the plates, so this collision happens more quickly, so earthquakes happen there over and over again.
Could the danger of an earthquake be prevented?
American geologists recently published a report warning the Turkish government. In 1997 there was also a terrible earthquake in Turkey, in which more than 17 thousand people died. After this, in Turkey many regulations regarding building construction were established.
But the government has completely failed to implement it. Erdeg Mustafa, a civil engineer at Boggis University in Turkey, says: All the buildings that have been destroyed by the earthquake were built after the year 2000. This could have been avoided if the government had enforced the rules.
Now you know why transboundary earthquakes are dangerous?
The effect of the cross-border earthquake is directly in two countries. If the intensity of the earthquake is around 7 on the Richter scale, then both countries are damaged.
It’s easy to understand- In 2015 there was an earthquake on the border of Nepal and Tibet. The intensity of the earthquake on the Richter scale was 7.3. 8,000 people died from the earthquake in Nepal, while 27 people died and 856 people were injured from the earthquake in Tibet.
In Iraq and Iran also in 2017, there was a lot of damage due to the cross-border earthquake. At the time, strong seismic tremors were felt from the Kurdish city of Halabja in Iraq to Kermanshah province in Iran. So 630 people had died in both countries together and more than 8 thousand people were injured.