# 7.8 Earthquake in Türkiye & Syria 02/06/2023 **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 6, 2023, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377 "2023-02-06T12:14:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/1 "2023-02-06T12:14:08Z")
Terrible News Today. > **[Factbox: Turkey quake: international support and offers of aid](https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/turkey-quake-international-support-offers-aid-2023-02-06/)** > > Dozens of governments and international organisations have responded with offers of support after an earthquake of magnitude 7.8 struck central Turkey and northwest Syria. I’m hearing some estimates of more than Ten Thousand presumed dead. Several powerful after shocks have also been felt. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/2 "2023-02-06T13:06:21Z")
Poor people. The shocks have been felt as far south as Israel - my wife’s office building in Tel Aviv was evacuated. ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/3 "2023-02-06T13:13:58Z")
I’m so sorry, I just realized I didn’t use the correct spelling for Turkiye. I will ask a mod to correct it. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/4 "2023-02-06T13:38:11Z")
I don’t see where you tried to spell the native name, but that’s _Türkiye_ (تركیه) My question is, what magnitudes of earthquakes are those reinforced-concrete buildings designed to withstand? ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/5 "2023-02-06T13:51:08Z")
Here’s background on the request for the updates spelling [Name of Turkey - Wikipedia](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Name_of_Turkey#:~:text=Turkey%20adopted%20its%20official%20name,republic%20on%2029%20October%201923). ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/6 "2023-02-06T13:55:37Z")
Al Jazeera says they were hit by a second major quake Thousands wounded, many trapped as rescue operations continue in both countries. [Turkey-Syria earthquakes live: 2,300 dead; rescue efforts ongoing | Earthquakes News | Al Jazeera](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2023/2/6/many-dead-as-powerful-quake-shakes-turkey-syria) Warning: al Jazeera often starts up with video, including sound. But they are pretty good for news from that part of the world. They are reporting more than 1800 dead, and rescue efforts underway to rescue those still alive under the rubble. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/7 "2023-02-06T13:59:33Z")
> [@DPRK](#): > > تركیه Is that script still in use in Türkiye? ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/8 "2023-02-06T14:37:05Z")
Ars technica has a map of shocks (including a 7.5 aftershock) 2200 year old Gaziantep Castle (which I would assume has encountered previous quakes) received significant damage. > **[Major earthquake devastates areas of Southern Turkey and Northern Syria](https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/02/major-earthquake-devastates-areas-of-southern-turkey-and-northern-syria/)** > > The early death toll is 1,600 people, but this number will grow. Brian ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b77776/32.png) [@Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_was_in_Saudi)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/9 "2023-02-06T15:40:17Z")
I have a bad feeling about this. Building codes in that neck of the words are not the best. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/10 "2023-02-06T16:14:19Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > > [@DPRK](#): > > > > تركیه > > Is that script still in use in Türkiye? Not since the Ottoman Empire! However, the modern name can be regarded as a modernisation/transliteration of the Ottoman name. Or what @puzzlegal posted; in any case u ≠ ü in Turkish. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/11 "2023-02-06T16:25:35Z")
> [@Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](#): > > I have a bad feeling about this. Building codes in that neck of the words are not the best. Yeah, that area has a lot of unreinforced masonry construction, some of it centuries old. Unreinforced masonry is really bad in earthquakes. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/12 "2023-02-07T00:05:22Z")
Turkey has been slowly updating its building codes since the 1999 earthquake, and earthquake insurance has been mandatory for a while. The former frankly doesn’t help much, it takes too long to bake in, but at least most folks will have financial help. The whole thing is very depressing. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/13 "2023-02-07T00:24:56Z")
> [@DPRK](#): > > My question is, what magnitudes of earthquakes are those reinforced-concrete buildings designed to withstand? The standards there are likely not the same as in the west. In fact, I’d be surprised if there were any enforced codes at all in that neck of the woods. Perhaps in Istanbul, but along the border I doubt that rebar is plentiful, and that what little _is_ used in the buildings is inadequate to the task. Also, one has to expect that the concrete may not be mixed to adequate PSI strength, nor always properly placed/cured, and the aggregate in the mix may be sandstone or something else inadequate to the task. For example, on a multi-story building in the west, you do NOT place concrete in more than a 3’ lift, as doing so will cause the aggregate to sink to the bottom. We had to stop Egyptian workers who were attempting to do a 12’ lift on the new embassy building in Cairo. The 9.2 1964 earthquake in Anchorage caused significant structural damage to many buildings, but none of them collapsed like the ones we’re seeing on the news. That’s because proper construction specs were used to build them. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b77776/32.png) [@Paul\_was\_in\_Saudi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_was_in_Saudi)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 9:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/14 "2023-02-07T09:58:05Z")
And it is still getting worse. Earthquakes are like that, more bad news comes in when communications are reestablished. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 10:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/15 "2023-02-07T10:07:14Z")
Yeah. They’ve counted 5,000 dead so far, but they think the actual number could reach 20,000. ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/16 "2023-02-07T12:09:04Z")
Some of the video is just heartbreaking. Well, I suppose pretty much all of it is. The weather is just adding to the misery. There is a video this morning of a woman on her phone begging for help and she is buried under so much rubble, it makes me feel guilty to be sitting in a warm comfortable place. ---
**Author:** ![pullin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c57346/32.png) [@pullin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pullin)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/17 "2023-02-07T12:10:17Z")
My eldest just found out he’s been reassigned. He’ll be delivering relief supplies to the area for at least the next month or two. He’s looking forward to it, saying he enjoys his job, but this adds additional significance. ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/18 "2023-02-07T12:15:41Z")
Well I thank him for helping with a glad heart. I pray he remains safe and that he is uplifted by the help he is able to render. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/19 "2023-02-07T13:10:22Z")
It’s awful. And it looks like some of the collapsed buildings are right next to ones that appear to be OK, so at least some buildings, perhaps ones build in recent years, were good enough. As if this region needed this, another kick in the nethers. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377/20 "2023-02-07T13:42:55Z")
Sometimes it’s just a matter of dumb luck. You can have two identical buildings, one next to the other, and one will collapse while the other one won’t. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/7-8-earthquake-in-turkiye-syria-02-06-2023/979377.md?page=2)